What to Think About When Buying an Aircraft

Australia is a country that covers 7.7 million square kilometers, most of which is made up of vast stretches of desert and wilderness. In fact, 40% of Australia is thought to be untouched by man. With nearly the entire population living within an hour from the ocean, air travel is increasingly more common in our Land Down Under, as people are forced to fly coast to coast.

Because of this, more and more companies are purchasing their own aircrafts to use everyday as their employees are forced to cross the great desert plains; be it the largest corporations to the humblest of family-owned.

The Cost

Naturally, the first thing that someone thinks about when making any major purchase is the cost. When buying an airplane it really isn’t very different from buying a car; all the same questions need answering. What model? New or used? How many kilometers? How does it perform?

The cost can fluctuate wildly depending on the answers to these questions. Today, you can buy a used, single-engine propeller aircraft for as little as $100,000. On the other hand, if you're looking for a business-class jet, that's likely going to cost more than a million.

Finding the Right Model

The trick when buying an airplane is finding exactly what you need; no more, no less. No two are the same; the differences between some are as if comparing a Vespa scooter and a Sherman tank. Before purchasing, think long and hard about how you're going to be using the aircraft. 

What distances are you going to be traveling? You’re going to need to make sure your fuel tank is large enough and the aircraft durable enough to travel the distances that you need. For some, that might be to just the next town over. For others, the other side of the country. 

How many seats will you need? For every extra seat that you buy, you will not only be paying more on the initial purchase, but also on fuel,  maintenance and insurance costs. The premiums on an aircraft can run up to 5% of the replacement cost.

Where will you be landing? Not all aircraft are suited to be landing on non-sealed airstrips. And if you’re landing on water it’s a whole different story entirely.

New or Used?

Just like buying a car, you can save a good amount of money when buying second-hand. Of course, doing so does run a greater risk of purchasing something that isn’t at 100%. That’s why it is important to enlist aid from a specialist dealer or other industry professional to inspect the aircraft for you. The last thing you need is to be in mid-air when you find out the previous owner skimped on the maintenance.

Financing

Now you’ve picked out your dream aircraft, it’s time to buy. If you’re someone who has ever bought a car, boat or any other form of heavy machinery, you’re already familiar with the process of buying an airplane. Though depending on the model of aircraft, it’s likely it may be your most expensive purchase yet.

Unless you’re one of the few who can afford an aircraft out of pocket, you're going to want to get in contact with a finance broker to secure funding for the purchase. You might think that you can’t afford to buy outright and instead you should rent an aircraft instead. This is entirely viable, though only for short term use. 

Purchasing almost always works better in the long run, especially considering the ATO allows any company to claim depreciation of an aircraft until it is ten years old. This makes the option of purchasing an aircraft through a chattel mortgage structure far more cost effective than leasing an aircraft for many businesses.

Whether you’re ready to say yes to your dream plane or you’ve only just had the thought, you should get in touch with a business financing organization as soon as possible. Leaslink handles all kinds of types of financing for business, and aircraft financing is one of our specialties.