Pre-owned airliner or business jet: what you are actually buying

Buying a pre-owned airliner for private use means, in practice, buying a business jet derived from an airliner: the same airframe, fitted with a private cabin. And whatever the aircraft, the purchase covers more than the aeroplane: an airframe and engines each identified by a serial number, a cabin, records, a title and an operating regime.

This article sets out what the purchase covers. The market, prices and steps are in our guide to buying a pre-owned business jet and in the complete business jet acquisition process.

Airliners turned business jets

Airliner manufacturers offer their own private versions. At Airbus, the ACJ range comprises the ACJ TwoTwenty, derived from the A220-100, the ACJ319neo and ACJ320neo from the A320neo family, the ACJ330neo and the ACJ350. At Boeing, BBJs have been derived from the 737, then the 787, 777 and 747-8. Embraer built the Lineage 1000 from its E190 and stopped selling it in August 2020: it is now available only pre-owned.

An airliner in airline configuration is a different purchase. Its cabin has to be rebuilt entirely, and fitting a private cabin is a modification of the aircraft, with its own approval, lead time and cost. An aircraft that has already been completed is therefore judged on its cabin as much as on its airframe.

Airframe and engines: two assets, several serial numbers

An aircraft is sold under its airframe serial number, but each engine has its own, and its own history. On the Cape Town Convention’s International Registry, jet engines of at least 1,750 lb of thrust are objects separate from the airframe. In the United States, an identified engine of at least 550 horsepower can carry a separately recorded security interest.

In practice, the purchase checks three things engine by engine: that its serial number matches the records, that no lien encumbers it, and whether it is covered by an hourly maintenance programme, which may or may not transfer with the aircraft.

The cabin: a certified part of the aircraft

Cabin systems (entertainment, controls, galley) form part of the aircraft’s certification, and their parts sometimes become obsolete. On an aircraft on the United States register, major alterations and repairs are recorded on a Form 337, which title reports include.

A modification approved by one authority is not always validated by another. If the aircraft changes register, the completion has to be accepted by the new authority, which is checked before the letter of intent.

The records: where the value lies

The aircraft is worth what its records are worth: logbooks, maintenance status, declared damage, modifications. The pre-buy inspection checks the aircraft against those records, at a facility independent of the seller.

Title: registration does not prove ownership

Registration gives the aircraft its nationality, not an owner. United States law says so expressly: the certificate of registration is not evidence of ownership where ownership is in issue. Ownership and liens are read in the registry file, document by document; our article on the aircraft abstract of title explains how.

The operating regime

The same aircraft is not operated in the same way for every use. Under the European framework, private flights on a jet are non-commercial operations with a complex motor-powered aircraft (Part-NCC), which require a declaration to the authority. If it is offered to third parties for payment, the operation in principle becomes commercial air transport, under a management company’s air operator certificate. The choice is made with your advisers before closing.

Conclusion

A pre-owned airliner for private use is chosen on its cabin as much as on its airframe, and bought like any business jet: serial number by serial number, record by record.

Our business aviation acquisitions work covers the search for the aircraft and the introduction to its seller; your advisers then handle the inspection, the title and closing.