Pre-buy inspection
A pre-buy inspection is the independent technical examination a buyer commissions before completing an aircraft purchase, ideally at a maintenance facility of the buyer's choosing rather than the seller's. It covers records review, corrosion and structural checks, engine borescopes, avionics function, compliance with airworthiness directives and often a test flight, and it takes one to three weeks at a cost of $15,000–$100,000 depending on aircraft size. The findings feed into the purchase agreement: airworthiness defects are usually the seller's responsibility to fix, cosmetic and non-airworthiness items are negotiated. Skipping the pre-buy to win a competitive deal is the most common expensive mistake in aircraft buying.