Dream fulfilled
Buying your first airplane
By Collin Callahan
At some point, every pilot dreams of owning their own airplane. The ability to head to the airport for a flight without needing to work around others’ schedules or having to worry that another pilot has mistreated the airplane is ideal.
Photography by David Tulis
But the buying process can be daunting for first-time buyers. Aside from a house, an airplane is often one of the single most expensive items a person will purchase. You want to make sure you’re purchasing something that you will be able to enjoy for the long haul.
In 2022, AOPA Video Editor Michelle Walker and her husband, Patrick, purchased their first airplane, a 1946 Cessna 140. Their experience was similar to many first-time buyers.
Choosing a make and model
Finding the right airplane starts with a clear mission for the aircraft. Are you looking for a docile trainer that you can earn your certificate and fly your first 100 hours in? Do you want to load up the family and cruise cross-country to new places? Or are you looking for a single-seat sportster that can do loops and rolls? A clear mission makes it easier to identify the right airplane.
For the Walkers, their mission was flight training.
“We started by having conversations about what we needed for an airplane,” said Michelle, who has a sport pilot certificate. “Patrick is working on his commercial, and I want to work on my private. We needed an airplane that had the equipment that could allow us to do that—VOR, artificial horizon, that kind of thing.”
"Aircraft ownership has been a very rewarding experience so far."They also had to make sure that their airplane could support other essential equipment. Based at Frederick Municipal Airport (FDK), they’re inside a Mode C veil and are required to have a Mode C transponder and ADS-B. An electrical system was a must.
Another consideration: The airplane would be parked on the ramp, and not all aircraft fare well when exposed to the elements. Long-term exposure to the sun can deteriorate fabric-covered airplanes, for instance.
Ultimately, the couple settled on the Cessna 140, a two-seat taildragger first produced in 1946. Both completed their primary training in tailwheel airplanes without electrical systems and found the 140 appealing. The airplane’s performance isn’t outstanding; the airplane cruises at about 110 miles per hour, but it’s enough for training and occasional cross-country flights.
Finding your airplane
Michelle and Patrick found several Cessna 140s for sale across the country, including one in Colorado, but they focused on one in Connecticut.
“A couple of things that it had attracted us to this airplane in particular were low time on the engine,” Patrick said. “It was about 300 hours since overhaul. And not all 140s have the same instrument panel. This one had a slightly more updated instrument panel than some of them, with a vacuum system for artificial horizon and heading indicator.”
Another benefit: the airplane was located closer to home.
“Once you’ve chosen a good option for an airplane you’re interested in, there’s a lot of time spent going to see it and getting a mechanic to do a prebuy [inspection] and all of that,” Patrick said. Any potential savings on the purchase price of an airplane 1,000 miles away can quickly be eaten up by travel and hotels, plus the added expense of a long ferry flight when it’s time to bring the airplane home.
You should have a prepurchase inspection (known as a prebuy) done on an aircraft that you are looking at. A licensed airframe and powerplant mechanic can look over the aircraft and its logbooks to flag any issues that could be showstoppers—corrosion, damage, and other maintenance issues. It’s best to have a third party who hasn’t worked on the aircraft before do the prebuy inspection.
If possible, have a mechanic with extensive knowledge of the make and model do the inspection. Every aircraft model has its intricacies, and an experienced mechanic will know the “gotchas” that are unique to the model.
Paperwork
Once you decide to move forward with the purchase of an airplane, it’s time to start the paperwork.
A purchase contract clearly stating the terms of the sale should be signed by both parties. Usually it’s signed when a price is agreed upon, but before the prebuy takes place. AOPA offers a sample sales agreement online, but buyers may also want to consult an attorney.
You will also need to work with a lender if the airplane will be financed, usually securing a preapproval before making an offer on a specific airplane. Much like buying a home, lenders will review various financial documents to make sure that the buyer has the financial resources to make payments. The process can be stressful for first-time buyers.
“It was a bit difficult for us because we were buying a vintage taildragger and banks saw that as a higher liability, so the rates were pretty high,” Michelle said. “But we got multiple quotes and ended up going with a bank that frequently does loans for vintage taildragger-type airplanes, and they were extremely helpful and responsive in making sure we didn’t miss anything.”
A title search should also be part of the closing process. The last thing anyone wants is to find out that there is a lien on their new airplane that could jeopardize their ownership. Lenders can perform title searches, but an all-cash buyer can also use title search services.
Buyers will need to make sure insurance is lined up as well. Once the sale is finalized and you own the airplane, you’re responsible for it.
Enjoying ownership
With the purchase of their airplane complete, the Walkers made their first flight in an airplane that was all theirs, a 270-nautical-mile trip from Connecticut to Frederick.
“We planned to make three stops just to make sure we were comfortable but ended up feeling good and only doing two stops,” Michelle said. “The first stop was an airport close to Patrick’s parents’ house, so they came out and brought us snacks and cheered us on. After that first stop, we really were getting the feel of it."
Once in Frederick, they got to work making the airplane theirs. Incandescent lights were swapped for more efficient LED bulbs, issues brought up in the prebuy were addressed, and they started planning for future upgrades to lower the weight and increase the performance of the airplane.
“Aircraft ownership has been a very rewarding experience so far,” Michelle said. “We’ve loved taking an active role in the maintenance and just did the first owner-assisted annual inspection. We’ve kept a spreadsheet of our expenses and calculated that the hourly operating cost is cheaper than it would be to rent, even though it is more work. It’s a lot of fun to be able to build hours flying an airplane that we love for a reasonable cost.”
