Finance

There are only some 200,000 aircraft in the U.S.—there are more cars than that in a large town—so why any profit-oriented insurer would enter such a restricted market seems to defy logic. Yet, in the last decade, the number of aviation insurance underwriters has gone from the old, hard core of nine to 14, an […]

Uber has attracted dozens of speakers from the aviation industry, government and technology sectors to a large summit on “urban air transportation” in Dallas this week. The Uber Elevate Summit kicks off Tuesday and features speeches and panel discussions on the promise and problems of having fleets of electric VTOL aircraft buzzing around major cities. […]

AOPA says the FAA is about to approve more liberalization of aircraft certification by relaxing some requirements for GA aircraft. In a story on its website, AOPA says the agency is ready to adopt less stringent standards for software, electromagnetic protection and lightning strike survival for equipment in light aircraft. Current standards apply to all […]

If you’re a reader of current events—and these days, who isn’t?—you can’t have missed Friday morning’s seismic news about the U.K.’s vote to exit the European Union. It’s easy to compartmentalize that as being “over there” with little or no impact on the U.S. Pardon me, but I don’t think so, although no one knows […]

I have always been baffled by the psychology of paying a company a tidy of sum of money to assure that I get one of the first new-and-improved widgets it proposes to make: the pre-production deposit or, as it’s popularly known, a “position.” This is quite common in the aircraft business as most recently demonstrated […]

A viable replacement for 100LL seems closer than ever — and with the announcement that Swift Fuel can compete at low-lead’s price point, it’s looking more and more likely to end up in your tank before the decade is out. We spoke with Swift’s Chris D’Acosta at Sun ‘n Fun. Duration: 8:41 File Size: 7.6 […]

Flying clubs purchasing aircraft can now obtain special financing from AOPA, the association announced Wednesday. AOPA Aviation Finance Co. offers four options for start-up clubs and existing clubs shopping for additional aircraft. “Flying clubs offer pilots of all skill levels the benefit of shared aircraft ownership and a ready-made community of like-minded aviators,” said Adam […]

Not surprisingly, as the rate of price increases for new airplanes left the rate of inflation in the dust, the business of giving new life to aging airplanes became a growth industry. The last 20 years has shown that there is a demand for general aviation airplanes, however, that demand has also been shown to […]

One of my secret ambitions has been to own an airplane company and I think I’m about to realize it. Not to reveal too much about my personal finances, but I’m about to come into a lot of money. I mean a really, huge, stupid amount of money. I’ve been getting a lot of e-mails […]

You’ve decided that it’s time to buy an airplane, or you own one and you want to upgrade it with a glass panel or a larger engine. The “how will I pay for it?” refrain has gone through your head more than once. Now you have to listen to that voice. It’s time to get […]