The Duncan Download Blog: Business Aviation Advice & Observations

The mutually beneficial partnership between OEMs and MROs. It's as cut and dried as most business relationships. 

During the past 59 years, Duncan Aviation team members have established an excellent rapport and cultivated thousands of relationships. See a full size timeline here. 

What's more impressive is the type of relationships they choose to seek out and grow. From other MROs and smaller niche repair shops to original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), the relationships team members at all levels develop help customers and the industry in general.

Want to read more about how we stay on the same wavelength during changing times? Read the rest of the article in our Spring 2015 Duncan Debrief. 

To the average person, a 96-month Embraer Legacy 600 inspection looks a lot like organized chaos—organized being the key word.

Neatly catalogued aircraft parts surround a gutted fuselage. Airframe technicians line the interior and exterior of the aircraft, checking and testing every inch, looking for needed repairs.

Add an interior refurbishment, new paint, a Wi-Fi system installation and you'll start to understand why a project of this magnitude takes time to plan and complete.

"Upon delivery, the jet is, in many ways, new again," explains Project Manager Tracy Hein. "Every inch of that aircraft is touched by several professionals—from airframe technicians to interior install experts and paint team members. And before delivery, we go over it again, ensuring the aircraft leaves our facility as flawless as it was on its first flight."

Read more about the Embraer Legacy 600 custom solutions, spot-on paint and final business jet touches here.

Or watch the tip-to-tail refurbushment in the following three-minute video.

When a customer came to Duncan Aviation's Battle Creek facility with a Dassault Falcon 50EX, his mission was to leave with the best upgrades in the cabin, as well as the flight deck.

"Our customer dubbed the Falcon a Time Machine, and wanted to ensure this time saver was the most comfortable and efficient tool to get from point A to point B," says Completions Sales Rep Nate Darlington, confirming that the creative tail number M-CFLY was, in fact, a Back to the Future time-traveler movie reference.

After completing a pre-buy inspection through Duncan Aviation, the aircraft went directly into an airframe inspection, complete interior refurbishment, complete aircraft paint refurbishment, Cabin Management System (CMS) installation and flight deck upgrades.

Read more about the completed Time Machine in the Spring 2015 issue of the Duncan Debrief.

Contributed by Doug Roth, aircraft sales rep

As your business aircraft ages, there will come a point when you begin to ask yourself if it is still worth spending money on it or is it time to sell or trade. This generally occurs about the time a major inspection, engine overhaul, paint/interior refurb or mandatory avionics upgrade is coming due.

There are a lot of factors that go into making the decision to reinvest in the aircraft, but the biggest and most obvious is whether the money is well spent. The answer to this question can actually be quite simple and lies in the aircraft value once the investment is made.

The value of an older aircraft can be determined with this simple formula.

Value= Base aircraft marketable value + engine value + inspection value + paint / interior value

However, all the parts that go into it can be rather complicated. Let me walk you through it.

Base Aircraft Marketable Value

For a quick determination of the base marketable value of your aircraft, you can begin with industry-recognized aircraft value reference guides, such as Vref and Aircraft Blue Book. These books provide recent sales data and information on your specific make model aircraft. However, at the time of their publication the information can be almost six months old so they may not accurately reflect any market changes that are beginning to trend.

If you need accurate market information to make a decision about selling or trading your aircraft, it is wise to consult with an aircraft sales professional for the latest in market conditions.   

Keep in mind, this base value is just a starting point. You still need to take into account how fresh your inspections are or how many hours remain on the engines. These factors will have an impact on the overall value, both positive and negative.

Engine Value

The model of your aircraft and whether or not others like it are typically on an engine maintenance program, will determine how you calculate engine value.

The majority of aircraft with the Honeywell TFE731-20,-40,-60 engines are typically on an engine maintenance program. If your TFE731-xx engines are on a maintenance program then their value adjustment will be zero, because they are considered base average among those model engines. However, if your TFE731-xx engines are not on an engine program, then adjustment to the base aircraft value will be negative the amount to buy into the program.

Example of Engines Not On Maintenance Programs

For aircraft with engines not typically on a maintenance program, such as aircraft with PW JT15D-5 series, the value adjustment is based on the number of hours remaining, above or below the engine’s mid-life. Take the number of hours above or below mid-life and multiply it by the hourly operating cost of the engine. If the hours are below the mid-life, add this to the base aircraft value. If the hours are above the mid-life, subtract.

Once an aircraft reaches 30 years, engine values are based more often on the life remaining rather than an engine program. Engines with less than 1500 hours will have a negative value adjustment based on the cost per hour.

Inspection Value

An aircraft’s base value on the market typically assumes that the airframe inspection life is at 80%. Therefore, an aircraft with a fresh inspection could add up to 20% of the cost of a typical inspection to this base value. The opposite is also true. If the inspection life is less than 80%, the value will be reduced.

For example on a Falcon 50, a C check can cost in the neighborhood of $250,000 and will add six years until the next major inspection. If there are three years, or 50% remaining in the inspection cycle, then the base aircraft value will be reduced by 30%, or $75,000.

Cosmetics Value

With normal use an aircraft paint and interior can have a life of about 7 and 8 years, respectively. Applying the same rule of 80%, the cost to restore the paint and interior can be applied to the base value in the same way we did with the inspections. 

However, the real value of your aircraft’s interior rests solely upon your personal preference and how you use it, not its age. You may love that 15-year interior because you were involved in the original selection of materials and colors.

Paint is similar, where personal preferences play a part, but to a smaller degree. Having the aircraft painted at major inspection intervals is beneficial to maintaining the value because a fresh coat of paint helps to protect from possible future corrosion.

Nonetheless, if you are considering selling, the value of the paint and interior rests in the personal preference of the buyer. Even a five year interior may be replaced because it is just not the new owner’s style. 

Avionics Updates

Deciding whether or not to invest in the necessary avionics to meet the upcoming mandates on your aging aircraft is a topic for another time. Stay tuned.

However, for the purpose of this example, all values above being equal, an aircraft with WAAS/LPV and/or ADS-B will have a significantly higher value than one without.

Total Aircraft Value

Now you have a snapshot of what your aircraft is worth. What now? Do you spend the money for the upcoming inspection or overhaul? Is it time to sell?

With later model aircraft, the costs associated with major inspections or restoration may be relatively small in comparison to the base market value, making the decision to invest in the work easy.

As aircraft grow older, those costs become larger in comparison to the base market value to the point where the majority of the aircraft’s value will be in the inspections and/or restorations.

This is where you need to take a hard look at and assess your future flying needs. If your aircraft meets payload and range requirements for the foreseeable future, the investment may be worth it.

Especially if your foresee operating the aircraft for at least 40% of the life of the inspections and/or restoration. In the end, when you reinvest, you are building value and life back into your aircraft to meet your future needs.  Your decision to invest should be based on your travel needs and requirements and what is most cost-effective for you.

Duncan Aviation Aircraft Sales

Need help in evaluating the value of your business aircraft? Contact your Duncan Aviation Aircraft Sales Representatives. We'll be happy to help. 

Download the latest business jet model/market summary here. 

http://www.duncanaviation.aero/aircraftsales/model-market-summary.php

On February 12, 2015, Gary Harpster, Duncan Aviation Avionics Sales Rep, suddenly fell back in his chair and died. 

In his own words, Gary tells how a day, much like any other, ends with getting a second chance. 

The day began much like any other work day, and I found myself going through my regular routines at Duncan Aviation- a few fire drills for customers who needed things right away, a couple of conference calls and the normal internal meetings.

After 5 p.m., the day was starting to wind down. It was cold outside, so I remotely started my car hoping it would be warm by the time I got in it. I was in the office shutting down my computer when I died. To say the least, it wasn't exactly what I had planned for the evening. But thankfully, there were still two people in the office with me.

While one called 911, the other person jumped up, checked my vitals and started CPR. They also called our company’s First Response Team. In less than five minutes (the typical response time), two individuals arrived and took control of the emergency situation. Both of these individuals previously received training in first aid and CPR from the American Heart Association as well as our local community college. With no pulse and the other symptoms, they made the decision to hook up the automated external defibrillator and push the button as prompted.

Thank goodness for their swiftness and advanced training or this article would certainly have been written by someone else. With the current Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act in place, I'm not at liberty to expound on some of the other success stories the company’s First Response Team has encountered. But I can say that their involvement has made a world of difference in a lot of lives.

In 2012, they responded to 56 calls at our Lincoln, Nebraska, facility; 48 in 2013, and 33 in 2014. With more than 1,200 employees at this facility, this averages to approximately 3.8 percent of our employee count. As you can imagine, the company’s goal is to get this number down to zero.

By implementing safety seminars, enforcing safety procedures and wellness programs, we have all become more cognizant of our surroundings and well-being. But sometimes a little piece of plaque can just break loose and everything changes. The reason for this article, though, is to inform companies of the merits of having a First Response Team within your organization. My doctors unequivocally stated that without our team's involvement, I would not have survived this ordeal.

Developing A First Response Team

So what does it take to put together a First Response Team? Surprisingly, within your organization, you likely may already have what it takes with volunteer firemen or individuals with current first-aid training. These individuals are perfect for this role, as they've already been trained and have the right moral fiber to help others in need. Once you have your team assembled and enough people to cover your current shifts and weekends, you simply need a first-aid kit and, if possible, an AED and/or portable oxygen tank. A company-wide communication tool also is desirable, but a simple public address system is enough to get started.

Even though you may not initially be able to purchase the AED, put one in your budget and plan accordingly; you' II be glad you did if the need ever arises. The ideal situation would be to have one at each hangar to minimize delays in your team's response times.

More often, avionics shops see AEDs in the corporate jets they maintain. As valuable as they can be on the ground, their potential in the air cannot be overemphasized. If a person's heart goes into ventricular fibrillation, you have four minutes or less before you risk potential brain damage due to a lack of oxygen. After four minutes, your primary concern will be CPR.

Survival decreases rapidly with time. After seven to nine minutes, your survival rate is low. As you can imagine in an aircraft at cruise altitude, this isn't much time. Even though we all try to maintain our health, you never know when something like this can happen. When it does, you either concede to be at the mercy of the local emergency services, or you initiate some control of your own destiny and buy yourself some time by implementing a First Response Team.

Speaking from firsthand knowledge, I'm very grateful that 20 years ago our company saw the benefits of such a team and that these individuals gave me a second chance.

"Space and time—they're the top two reasons operators come to Duncan Aviation instead of trying to sell their excess parts on their own," says Parts Expert Susan Masek.

After all, how many operators have the extra square footage required to house all of their surplus parts? And who has the time and marketing resources to match these parts with potential customers?

Not many, which is why so many operators choose to pair up with Duncan Aviation's aircraft parts consignment program.

"Instead of an operator storing, cataloging, advertising, selling, invoicing, collecting payment, packaging and shipping parts on their own, we take care of it all for them," says Susan. "We buy parts. We buy avionics. But sometimes consigning is the best option."

For three decades, the consignment experts at Duncan Aviation have helped operators convert surplus parts to cash. They have it down to a science.

To read more about this process, view our Spring 2015 Duncan Debrief. 

Every minute of every day, Duncan Aviation Parts Sales is waiting for your call.

“Some of my customers say they feel bad calling at 1 a.m., or on a holiday, but I tell them these are normal hours for us. We’re here, waiting to help,” explains Shirley Crouch, team leader for Duncan Aviation Parts Sales. “And at the end of the day, I really love helping customers find a solution when they keep running into walls.”

Shirley’s years of experience combined with her team’s 24/7/365 availably means each customer who calls receives streamline, top-notch customer service.

Duncan Aviation Parts Sales in Action

Shirley recently answered a call from a customer in Spain who had to be up and running in less than 24 hours. Based on past experience, she feared customs might cause a delay.

So she opted to have a courier hand-carry the aircraft parts to ensure all customs requirements were addressed along the way, reducing the AOG time from days to just hours.

“We will go to the ends of the earth to get a part to a customer who is AOG,” says Shirley.

The customer was ecstatic, as he fully understood how difficult his request was to fulfill on a short timeline as well as adhere to all import and export regulations—a task Duncan Aviation team members continually educate themselves on.

His aircraft was up and running in more than enough time to make the trip to Singapore.

Contact Us Today

Duncan Aviation’s Parts Sales team provides customers with an experience, unlike any other. They use their imagination to creatively solve the issues their customers face, and Shirley says customers know they can depend on her and the rest of the Duncan Aviation team.

That's why customers call back—all hours of the day, 365 days a year.

During a reception at the European Businss Aviation Convention and Exhibtion in Geneva, Switzerland, Duncan Aviation and Safran Engineering Services announced a new Supplemental Type Certificate for FANS-1/A solution that will cover the Bombardier Challenger 601-3A/3R business aircraft.

Safran Engineering Services will be in charge of the design and certification while Duncan Aviation will be responsible for the installation of the avionics into the aircraft. Duncan Aviation will be the owner of the Supplemental Type Certificate and is also responsible for the sales and marketing of the solution.

In the photo L to R: John Slieter, Duncan Aviation Vice President of Service Sales,  Wolf-Godart von Drachenfels, Executive VP Business Strategy, Safran Engineering Services (Safran Group), Aaron Hilkemann, Duncan Aviation President / CEO. 

Read the full announcement here. 

We can finally talk about this super secret project our Battle Creak, Michigan, paint team completed. ‪

The challenge: Paint Virgin's Galactic Girl.

The aircraft: Falcon 900EX.

The solution: Our team partnered with artist, John Stahr, to airbrush the well-known logo. When a customer comes to Duncan Aviation with a unique request, we make it happen. Watch the process in just a minute and a half.

In celebration of Earth Day, Duncan Aviation in Lincoln, Nebraska, partnered with several businesses and schools, to participate in the Cornhusker State Bank One Day Without Shoes drive to benefit the local homeless shelter, People's City Mission! 

The generosity of Duncan Aviation employees contributed five full barrels of shoes to the more than 16,000 pair of shoes collected across the community.  

In addition to shoes, employees cleaned out their dressers and closets and donated bags of clothing to support another local charity, Catholic Social Services. At the end of this three day event, a trailer full of clothing was pulled away.

All donations were welcomed. Clothing and shoes not fit to be worn will be recycled and any money earned from that recycling will be used to provide counseling, pay utility bills and rent, etc. for those in need.

Five years ago Duncan Aviation brought a group of team members together from all across the company with the goal of researching and implementing "green" initiatives that will save energy and money, reduce waste and give precise focus to innovative efforts, as well as strategic priorities. To this end, at the beginning of this they removed all Styrofoam cups from break rooms and continue to provide education on how to go green.

As a group, they wanted not only to impact change while at work, but also to encourage change in the daily lives of all Duncan Aviation team members. Their message is that even small changes can have a large impact.

“We saw the shoe and clothing drive events as an opportunity to combine our green initiatives with our strong support of volunteerism in the community,” says Kaela Paseka, lead graphics designer at Duncan Aviation and a member of the Green Team. “Each year we plan to pick a different organization in the community to support.”