Page 20 - April21T
P. 20

   Completed Gulfstream G200 interior – Stevens Aerospace.
“Don’t give a prospective buyer a rea- son to look away from your airplane,” Stearns said. “A great broker can help you look beyond the cosmetics of a good airplane, even if it’s as simple as cleaning the seats and adding new carpet runners. If you’re trying to move a million-and-a-half-dollar airplane, spending a little on a few things is nothing compared to the value of the airplane.”
Too true. It’s like looking at an exotic car. If one is just plain unkempt look- ing and the other is looking “factory new,” even if it costs X-thousands more, you’re more likely to want to take the clean one home. It’s just human nature.
As one interior shop owner said, “It’s amazing and a bit sad that an air- craft owner will live with worn-out looking carpeting, scratched windows, and scuffed sidewalls for years. But, when they decide to sell, they’re all up for making it look new. It’s a shame they don’t just want to make it nicer and more comfortable for their own enjoyment.”
So, what’s the bottom line when it comes to which cabin upgrades will bring the best return? Like we discov- ered in the avionics upgrade story in T &T’s December 2020 issue, it all de- pends on, well, way too many things to cover in this story. But as Stearns stressed, don’t just look at the bottom- line budget. Take time to explore all your options.
“Don’t just ask for an interior quote, but take some time to meet and speak with your interior designer about what’s important to you. How you use the airplane? Don’t hold back from say- ing, ‘what if we could do this, or replace that?’” he said. “Don’t just settle for a beautiful interior, but get a beautiful interior that’s yours.”
can do that will add value to your air- craft’s cabin.
“Along with the new seat-located USB ports, another popular upgrade is LED cabin lighting. Switching up- wash, downwash, even the reading lights to LED is a huge upgrade,” said Jeff Simmons, Duncan Aviation’s se- nior avionics sales representative. “You can get systems that change color that is very nice. Even if the owner wasn’t thinking of lighting initially, once the cabin is disassembled, that’s the time to do it. It’s a cost-effective upgrade that makes a big difference.”
That’s a great point: once the cabin is disassembled for any work, it’s a good idea to take a look at other work you want to do now or in the future.
“Anything you can do now in the way of preparing for future upgrades or additions will save time and money,” Stearns said. “Whether it’s seat-located USB chargers, new navigation/commu- nications antennas, or whatever. You can save thousands by doing the work now. That’s part of a good, detailed pre-project plan. It’s not only what you want to do today, but what’s coming in the next couple of years.”
SWAT Your Old Cabin Away
While we’ve covered a lot of options, one that we haven’t mentioned is a new service from Duncan Aviation that is now available at all three of the company’s MRO locations called SWAT: Survey Aircraft In- teriors, Write Prompt Quotes, Artistically Clean, Touch-Up, Dye, Correct, and Transform Appearance and Functionality.
18 • TWIN & TURBINE / April 2021
According to the company, the SWAT team will go through the aircraft and take care of all the “small items” that are not part of an aircraft’s scheduled service. SWAT services include touch- ing up paint, spot-dying leather seats, resewing curtain guides – a myriad of things that will give your cabin an overall fresher look.
So, What’s the Bottom Line?
Whether it’s a simple cleaning, new upholstery, carpeting and side- walls, hydrodipped hard goods, con- nectivity, and whatever else you can think of, there’s seemingly no limit to what you can do to make your cabin look like new.
The problem is, which upgrades will pay off? Well, again, if you’re keeping the airplane, then it’s totally up to you. Anything that adds comfort and con- venience to any flight is a worthwhile upgrade. But, if you’re on the fence about selling sometime soon, then you may well benefit from discussing your plan with a licensed aircraft ap- praiser/dealer.
“What appraisers typically say to us is that as long as the cabin refurb is new looking and well maintained, they will get a good percentage of their investment back,” Welch said. “They get to enjoy the new cabin now and get a good payback later on.”
One thing you have to be careful of, though, is unless you plan on keeping the airplane for a long time, don’t get too carried away with the colors and finishes you select. You may love do- ing all the soft finishes in your alma matter’s colors, but the next owner may not share your enthusiasm.
 Dale Smith has been a commercial, private and business aviation mar- keting and media communications specialist for nearly 40 years. He is an award-wining aviation journalist and aviation artist. Dale has been a licensed pilot since 1974 and has f lown more than 40 different types of aircraft. Contact Dale at dalesmith206@ comcast.net.















































































   18   19   20   21   22