Every horror story in pre-owned aviation — the corroded spar, the ghost logbook, the "fresh paint" hiding a hangar rash — was preventable with one discipline: a real pre-purchase inspection at an independent facility, scoped by people working for the buyer. On an eight-figure aircraft it costs a fraction of one percent of the price. Here is exactly what it covers and how to run it from Asia.
What a proper PPI covers
Physical inspection: airframe structure and corrosion mapping (critical for tropical-based aircraft), gear and flight controls, engine borescopes (unless OEM-programme terms waive them), APU, avionics functional checks and a cabin-systems shakedown. Records review — half the value: logbook continuity from delivery, Airworthiness Directive and Service Bulletin status, damage-repair documentation, engine-programme standing (paid-up? transferable?), weight-and-balance history and registration/lien searches. Test flight: pressurisation, avionics under load, autopilot behaviour and squawk generation before, not after, closing.
What it costs and how long it takes
| Aircraft class | Typical PPI cost (2026) | Typical duration |
|---|---|---|
| Light / VLJ | $15,000 – $30,000 | 3–5 days |
| Midsize / super-mid | $25,000 – $50,000 | 5–8 days |
| Large / ultra-long-range | $50,000 – $150,000+ | 1–3 weeks |
Add your technical representative's fees — an independent engineer who scopes the work order, sits at the facility and argues your side of every finding. Worth every dollar.
Where to do it in Asia
Use a facility rated for the type that is not the seller's house MRO: Jet Aviation Singapore (Seletar) for Gulfstream and Bombardier types, Metrojet (Hong Kong/Zhuhai) across large-cabin fleets, ExecuJet MRO (Kuala Lumpur, Dubai) for Bombardier and Dassault, and OEM-owned service centres where slots allow. For aircraft based in the US or Europe it is usually cheaper to inspect there before the delivery flight than to position the aircraft first.
Red flags that should kill the deal
Logbook gaps or "records in storage, will follow"; undisclosed damage history surfacing in the paper trail; corrosion findings beyond surface treatment on a tropical-based airframe; engines off-programme and near overhaul with the price not reflecting it; a seller pushing an "as-is, where-is" close on an aircraft they will not open up; and delivery pressure timed to expire your inspection rights. Any one of these is negotiating leverage; two or more is your cue to walk — inventory is finite but so is your capital, and the next aircraft exists.
Where the PPI sits in the deal
Sequence: LOI with refundable deposit → escrow opened → PPI → findings negotiated (fix, credit, or walk) → closing. Never wire a non-refundable deposit before inspection rights are secured in writing. The full sequence, with the tax and registration decisions that run alongside it, is in the step-by-step buying guide.
Sources & further reading
- NBAA — Aircraft Transactions Guide.
- IADA — dealer standards and transaction best practice.
- Jet Aviation — Singapore Seletar MRO capabilities.