WHO: Kandi Spangler
COMPANY:
jetAVIVA
POSITION:
Sales Director
HOMEBASE:
Denver, Rocky Mountain Metropolitan Airport (KBJC)
RATINGS:
PPL, Instrument
HOURS:
850
1. Can you describe your aviation background?
I first fell in love with aviation in 1992 after experiencing a nighttime training flight in a C172 with a high school friend of mine. So, I borrowed money from an older sibling and started flight training at the age of 16 in eastern Ohio. Thereafter, I attended Embry-Riddle and graduated with a management degree.
Over the past 20 years, I have worked in various operational and management roles starting at NetJets (where I met my husband). Then I moved on to Part 135 and eventually aircraft maintenance marketing and sales. All of these roles gave me an excellent platform to make the jump into aircraft sales in 2013, and I haven’t looked back since. I love this job and find it incredibly rewarding.
2. As someone who monitors the marketplace closely, how has the turbine aircraft market trended in recent years? How do you predict the presidential election will affect the market in 2020?
Predicting the aircraft marketplace is like predicting the weather; the further out you look, the harder it is to determine what the climate will be like. However, my internal market barometer tells me that we can expect activity to level off some after the first of the year, but it will still be somewhat robust for certain market segments.
Interestingly, we’ve seen a real dichotomy of the marketplace the past 18 months that I expect to continue into for the foreseeable future. I don’t believe we can identify trends based on market segments anymore, but rather, we need to look at specific makes/models of aircraft to see if they are healthy or not. The airplanes that continue to do well in the market are the airplanes that are versatile, efficient, have a decent range, are roomy with a lot of seats, and have good short-field performance.
As for the presidential election, history has shown us that as we get closer to the election, businesses will take a conservative approach to spending until they know what they’re dealing with on a political front. It’s not that business stops during an election year; they simply don’t know how to structure their purchases and hold assets. So, I predict a slower than normal summer for aircraft sales due to the pending election. Still, I think there might also be a mad rush at the end of the fourth quarter to take advantage of accelerated depreciation again, and once businesses know how to plan going forward.
3. Can you share some of the surfacing aviation trends and technologies that excite you the most?
The Urban Air Mobility (UAM) movement excites me the most. Some people think flying cars is still a pipe dream, but the reality is we are not that far off from seeing them emerge into the marketplace – much like electric cars in the past 10 years. The technology is there; now it’s a matter of making them more efficient, gaining government certifications and building the infrastructure for it. It’s really an exciting time to be involved in aviation!
4. What areas of the aircraft buying process do you find are most commonly overlooked?
Engine and airframe programs seem to be the most commonly overlooked items, even amongst some brokers out there. This can have a huge effect on aircraft value and appropriate purchase price if the program is not understood and transferred properly at the time of closing. This is an area where you really want to dot your i’s and cross your t’s prior to closing if you don’t want to rely on luck in the matter.
5. This issue, we introduce your buyer’s guide to the Citation 560XL series. What prompted you to create this guide, and what can readers expect to learn?
Whether you’re buying or selling, there are a lot of nuances associated with the Citation XL series, including the levels of coverage mentioned above like engine and airframe maintenance programs. The XL is a fantastic airplane and will be for some time. But at the end of the day, it’s about making sound investment decisions, and this guide is helping owners and buyers alike do just that.
