Advisory Services
Aircraft Buyers Agent
Technical Due Diligence
Buyer-only representation for Boeing BBJ, Airbus ACJ and widebody VIP aircraft — establishing what a specific aircraft is actually worth before you commit to what the seller is asking.
Buyer-Side Diligence
The Price Is Set by the Records, Not the Listing
A large-cabin VIP aircraft trades on its paperwork. Two airframes of the same type, year and cabin can differ by millions once engine condition, the timing of the next heavy check, the traceability of life-limited parts and the certification status of the interior are priced in. Sellers and their brokers know where those differences sit. Most buyers find out after closing.
Aviation Asset Advisors acts only for the buyer. We are not paid by sellers, brokers, inspection facilities or maintenance providers, and we do not list aircraft. Our job is to turn the technical condition of one serial number into a figure you can negotiate with — and to say plainly when an aircraft should be walked away from.
Our principals include a retired wide-body airline captain, an FAA-appointed DAR-T and NAAA Senior Appraisers, so the operational, regulatory and valuation view of an aircraft comes from one team rather than three separate reports.
How a Mandate Runs
Six Decision Points, Brief to Bill of Sale
Mission and ownership brief
Range, cabin, operating base, intended registry and ownership structure decide which aircraft are viable. A BBJ destined for N-registry and private operation is assessed differently from one going onto a foreign air operator certificate or a government register.
Market screen by serial number
Available and off-market aircraft are screened against the brief and ranked on technical position: hours and cycles against the maintenance programme, the next heavy check, engine shop-visit exposure, and the certification basis of the cabin.
Records review before the LOI
A desktop review of each shortlisted aircraft's records happens before a letter of intent is signed, so problems such as broken back-to-birth traceability, open repairs or outstanding Airworthiness Directives surface while you still hold full negotiating leverage.
Technical terms of the purchase agreement
We write the technical schedule: inspection scope, delivery condition, who pays to correct airworthiness and non-airworthiness findings, the records standard at delivery, and the grounds for rejection.
Pre-purchase inspection
We write the workscope, select the facility, attend the inspection and test flight, and review each finding as it is raised. Every finding is classified — airworthiness, value-affecting or cosmetic — and priced.
Closing and delivery
A final records audit, verification that agreed corrections were completed, registry transfer and export or import certification, and technical acceptance at the delivery location.
What You Receive
Deliverables, Not Opinions
Shortlist Report
- Serial-number comparison against the brief
- Maintenance position against the programme
- Projected major maintenance exposure over the holding period
- Cabin certification basis and transferability
Records Findings Report
- Back-to-birth traceability of life-limited parts
- Airworthiness Directive and Service Bulletin status
- Repair, alteration and STC history
- Gaps identified, with remediation cost
Inspection Findings Ledger
- Every finding classified and priced
- Responsibility under the purchase agreement
- Correction verified before closing
- Items carried forward to the owner's maintenance plan
Valuation Position
- NAAA/USPAP-compliant appraisal where a lender requires one
- Offer adjusted for technical condition
- Resale considerations for the configuration
- Walk-away threshold agreed in advance
Where Value Hides
What Moves the Price of a VIP Airliner
Cabin photographs sell aircraft. These items set the price.
- Engine condition — time to the next shop visit, trend-monitoring data, borescope findings and remaining life on life-limited parts for both engines; a near-term shop visit is a seven-figure item
- Heavy check position — when the next major structural inspection falls due and what the aircraft's history suggests it will find
- Cabin certification — whether the VIP interior is approved under data that will transfer to your registry, with complete Instructions for Continued Airworthiness
- Records quality — life-limited parts without full traceability lose value and can become unusable
- Storage and utilisation history — long periods of inactivity, the preservation programme followed and the climate the aircraft sat in
- Registry history — previous registers, the export and import trail, and any gap in continuing-airworthiness oversight
- Avionics equipage — compliance with the airspace mandates on your intended routes, such as ADS-B Out and data-link requirements
Questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How is a buyers agent paid, and why does it matter?
Aviation Asset Advisors is retained and paid by the buyer alone. We take no commission from sellers, brokers, inspection facilities or maintenance providers, so nothing in our advice depends on whether a particular aircraft closes.
Should we involve you before or after we have found an aircraft?
Before the letter of intent if possible. Once an LOI is signed with a weak technical schedule, much of the buyer's leverage is gone. We can still step in later, but the earlier we review the records, the more the findings are worth in negotiation.
Can you represent us on a new BBJ or ACJ ordered from the manufacturer?
Yes. On a new aircraft the work shifts to the purchase agreement, specification, green aircraft acceptance and then the completion programme, which our completion representation covers.
What happens if the pre-purchase inspection finds serious problems?
Each finding is classified and priced. Depending on the purchase agreement, the seller corrects it, the price is adjusted, or the buyer rejects the aircraft. We recommend which route serves you, and we tell you if the aircraft is no longer worth pursuing.
Do you handle export, import and registration?
Yes. Our FAA-appointed DAR-T can issue export airworthiness approvals and airworthiness certificates within the limits of his authorisation, and we coordinate deregistration and registration with both authorities. See FAA DAR-T and regulatory advisory.
Related Advisory
Often Engaged Together
Begin Your Acquisition
Considering a Specific Aircraft?
Send us the serial number. We will tell you what we would look at first, in confidence and without obligation.
Request Consultation