Question for PC-12 operators...

[BushwickBill]

Huh? He asked about single pilot jets. I try to miss a lot too; gives me an excuse for being so dumb.

Woopy Doopy.... No more responding to post with my newfangled phone.

I'm just glad I wasn't arguing about something important like.... oh.

I guess nothing important happens here.

 

[AerroMatt]

Xrated's numbers are spot-on. Figure to operate a PC12 about 600hrs annually to break even on a leaseback to a 135 operator. All you are doing is wearing out your investment that much more rapidly.

 

[FlyFlyFly]

The above is very accurate. Quite often, the number that gets lost in the shuffle is the resale of the aircraft. If you are trying to operate an airplane ona 135 cert and getting good utilization, care for the aircraft goes down the tubes. The paint and interior wear out much quicker, the crews care less for the little things and the pax treat it like, well like a "rental". When you talk about another $300K at selling time, how does that impact the total cost of ownership? If your owner is financing the airplane on a 20 year amortization, he may be writing a big check at sell time. You need to make sure you have a finance type in your fold (not the aircraft broker or charter management firms people) that can evaluate the project start to finish, and they need to understand the used a\c market. I will say personally I think that the charter model of cost mitigation is more fiction than reality, since on total cost the owner usage needs to be so low that they may as well charter and skip ownership.

 

[AerroMatt]

...I think that the charter model of cost mitigation is more fiction than reality...

You are exactly right, Fly! This is why I haven't put my PC12 on a 135 ticket. It might make sense to someone who wants/needs a tax write-off. Otherwise, forget about it and put it in the hangar. The bird will appreciate no matter what, and the owner will come out ahead.

 

[FlyFlyFly]

The tax benefits of 135 are overrated. The real tax benefit is writing down the first 50% of the value of the bird in the first 2 years. That will outweigh ANY operating cost deductions. The revenue that charter generates does not come close to covering the true operating cost when one figures loss of market value on the airframe.

They may not know what they are doing when they buy, but the sting on the resale is never forgotten...

 

[400A]

Fly speaks the truth! On our Last airplane we did about 300 hours charter per year on the aircraft. We made about $200K profit over a 3.5 year period. When we sold if we got almost $750K less than we paid for it. That was with new paint and recent interior.

With the one we have know, we chose to keep it ultra low time and pristine. After 3.5 years in this one, we will get what we paid for it.

To quote the boss. The only reason to do it is if you need the cash flow.