Menu Sign In Contact FAQ
Banner
Welcome to our forums

Process of purchasing an aircraft located in another EU country

172driver wrote:

Couldn’t you just keep it on the Romanian register? Both Romania and NL are EU and EASA, as – presumably – is your license. Seems to me a way to avoid any pitfalls.

I think this is really the smartest approach, at least in the short term. All the registration paperwork is done with the same (Romanian) authority and once you own the aircraft you can insure it and fly it home exactly the same as if the previous owner were to fly from Romania to NL. Any decision about registration change is then completely separate from the purchase transaction and you can address it at home, with the aircraft in your own hangar and maintenance organization, at your leisure. In the meantime you can fly it!

Be very sure that the aircraft paperwork includes VAT-paid proof. If the current owner flies outside of Romania this should be readily available on-board the aircraft. It needs to be part of the purchase paperwork.

Make sure you due thorough due-diligence on title and ownership, including written proof that there are no liens against the aircraft.

Re pre-buy, I strongly suggest that you get a local mechanic that you know and trust to fly to Romania to do the pre-buy inspection, best would be the one you plan to use post-purchase. Request all the logs and have your mechanic check them for show-stoppers before either of you leave home. You should discuss with him what he will inspect and the sequence with checkpoints where you synchronize and confirm the next step. Specifically, the first step should be engine-related inspection unless you intend to immediately do an overhaul/replacement. Once that passes inspection, then the rest of the aircraft can be done. That way you keep a limited-cost option to walk away if there is a show-stopper.
Here are a couple articles that make interesting reading and put the risks a bit in perspective:
Paid for a peach and got a lemon
Looks sweet, tastes sour

Last Edited by chflyer at 01 Feb 11:31
LSZK, Switzerland

chflyer wrote:

Re pre-buy, I strongly suggest that you get a local mechanic that you know and trust to fly to Romania to do the pre-buy inspection, best would be the one you plan to use post-purchase.

Also, make sure you do NOT use the company for the Pre-Buy which does the maintenance…. we learnt about that the hard way….

EDL*, Germany

Steve6443 wrote:

Also, make sure you do NOT use the company for the Pre-Buy which does the maintenance…. we learnt about that the hard way….

I’d go further to say that the mechanic/firm doing the pre-buy should have no connection whatsoever with the seller, and should never have seen the plane before.

LSZK, Switzerland

The mechanic doing the pre-buy should, if possible, be the one to do your post-buy maintenance..

Maoraigh
EGPE, United Kingdom

Unfortunately I will not be able to arrange a local mechanic due to Covid lockdown, but I will be working with someone recommended and independent. Someone also mentioned a title/lien check, which I had on my list but cannot figure out how exactly to do this. Any suggestions?

EHRD, Netherlands

dutch_flyer wrote:

Someone also mentioned a title/lien check, which I had on my list but cannot figure out how exactly to do this.

That is a very national question (if titles on aircraft actually exist and if where to find them). In Germany there is a central register at the court of justice in Braunschweig.

Steve6443 wrote:

Also, make sure you do NOT use the company for the Pre-Buy which does the maintenance….

Just to be precise: Not the one which currently does the maintenance. It’s actually not such a bad idea to have the pre buy done by the company that will do the maintenance in the future – at least that is some protection against surprises at the first annual/100h…

Germany

Only if you know them well enough to trust the individual doing it. The MO also has a conflict of interest – it would like to earn money from maintaining it, so it is their interest for you to buy the aircraft and have them repair it. So they will probably prevent you from buying an absolute dog, but when in doubt, might end up on the optimistic side

Biggin Hill

This thread is probably relevant here.

If you have to travel hours to see something, prob90 you will buy it It’s just basic psychology. Everybody does it. I’ve done it with a used car…

Same “disaster scenario” is likely with using an avionics shop which is far away. High disaster probability there, too, for the same reasons, but that’s for another thread.

Administrator
Shoreham EGKA, United Kingdom

I also read that thread, and I think you are correct. I’ve been talking to this seller for a while, reviewed the documentation in detail, had video chat sessions to see/hear the airplane on the ground, cold start, while flying, etc. It’s under CAMO, has impeccable records, and is maintained by a well-regarded shop in Bucharest. Given that I’m struggling to find a mechanic to do the pre-buy, I am sort of considering taking a calculated risk. I’ve tried to de-risk as much as I can by fully researching ADs, SBs, and potential areas of concern for the model. The truth is I can afford to deal with a surprise if one is found, even if I might not prefer it. Am I completely crazy?

EHRD, Netherlands

No, you are not, but the current reality of airplane sales is :-)

tmo
EPKP - Kraków, Poland
Sign in to add your message

Back to Top