BUYING USED, BUYING SMART: THE PREBUY

The economic downturn continues to depress used aircraft prices so if you've managed to escape significant and sustained financial peril you could be well positioned to pick up a good used aircraft at a very good price. Unfortunately, not all bargains are what they seem. The old phrase "buyer beware" is as true as it's ever been. The course most pilots take to avert the potential heartache and financial headache created by a bad aircraft purchase is the prebuy inspection. But not all inspections are equal. And if you think a recently logged annual is good enough, you may want to reconsider.

To get a handle on how to conduct a proper prebuy, we spoke with Mike Busch, who was honored as "National Aviation Maintenance Technician of the Year" in 2008. The awards program is a cooperative effort between the FAA and over a dozen industry sponsors. Aside from writing for numerous aviation publications, Busch has also produced "Savvy Owner Seminars" that are focussed on better aircraft maintenance while spending less money. And, in a previous life, Busch cofounded AVweb and served as editor-in-chief for more than seven years. We found his comments on the proper prebuy frank, sensible, and sometimes … scary.

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BULLETPROOF ENGINES: ARE THERE ANY?

Yes, say engine overhaulers, and Lycoming's four-cylinder models own the category. Owning one substantially reduces the cost of flying.

Next to $6 avgas, the cost of routine engine maintenance and overhauls takes the biggest bite out of the aircraft ownership budget. You can always choose not to paint your airplane or live with ratty seats, but if the engine tanks, you've got an 1800-pound radio stack you can't even use because there's no way to spin the alternator.

Our owner reports on various models consistently confirm what we've always known: Some owners spend a lot less on aircraft maintenance simply because they own airplanes equipped with engines we have often considered bulletproof.

This concept is, itself, a misnomer. Nothing in aviation is truly bulletproof, but it's fair to say that some engines have a better service history than others and, conversely, some are simply money pits. That's not to say they don't perform, but it'll cost you more and reliability will suffer.

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PODCAST: PILOTS GET SOCIAL
The $100 hamburger can be a pleasant quest for pilots, but there's nothing like planning a flight to a specific event to get the prop turning. That's the theory behind Social Flight, an app that lists more than 3,500 flying-related events all over the U.S. with customized features that let pilots know where they can fly -- but, more importantly, why they should. AVweb's Russ Niles spoke with Social Flight's Jeff Simon. More...

MEET THE AVWEBFLASH TEAM

AVwebFlash is a twice-weekly summary of the latest news, articles, products, features, and events featured on AVweb, the world's premier independent aviation news resource.

The AVwebFlash team is:

Publisher
Tom Bliss

Editorial Director, Aviation Publications
Paul Bertorelli

Editor-in-Chief
Russ Niles

Webmaster
Scott Simmons

Contributing Editors
Mary Grady
Glenn Pew

Contributors
Kevin Lane-Cummings

Ad Coordinator
Karen Lund

Avionics Editor
Larry Anglisano

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