Importation question

I appear to be at the tail end of my ownership of my RV6A, as my medical is currently suspended and not likely to be returned in the near future.

So I have a question for those more knowledgeable than I regarding the importation of these aircraft from Canada into the US. I know the basics, but the wrinkle in the case of my aircraft is that it was built in the US, issued a Special Airworthiness Certificate, and then deregistered when I imported it into Canada in 2011. I still have the original Certificate and Operating Limitations. In fact, they're still in a pocket in the airplane; I left them there as a bit of a tribute to the builder.

So what would be involved in sending this plane back to the US? Obviously there are a lot more potential buyers south of the border than on my side, so I would like to be able to give interested Americans well-informed answers as to what might be involved.

Thanks in advance. And, as a side note, if my time as an RV owner and pilot is coming to an end, I have to say that I have no idea how I would have, or could have, coped with the experience of owning, flying, and maintaining my plane for the past 9 years without this forum. I wouldn't even have known where to start. My sincere thanks to Doug and every single person who ever responded to my dumb questions, or wrote a post with info I needed that I found through Search over the years. There aren't words for how valuable your help has been.

Ownership post-medical

While I'm not able to answer your actual question here's a couple things to consider:

1. A partnership with someone that meets PIC requirements for Canada might be the next step.

2. They act as PIC while you ride along and share the flying experience. Continued flight and fun is preserved while you work out your medical issues.

3. Seek a Canadian partner that might be interested in half ownership now, with an option to buy you out down the road.

Best of luck!

I recently imported a RV-4 from Canada that was originally built in the U.S.

It is much easier if you fly it to the U.S. The next owner can fly it legally in the U.S. To get the registration changed to U.S. you must first cancel the Canada registration. Then you need a new N number and airworthiness certificate. This will require at least a condition inspection and a DAR inspection.

The original U.S. airworthiness certificate and operation limitation will aid the DAR.

Importation

I believe you meant that the new U.S. owner CAN'T legally fly it in the U.S. while it is still registered in Canada. We imported one from Canada several years ago and you are correct....much, much easier if it is flown to it's U.S. destination by a Canadian pilot.

Nope. I ain't a lawyer, didn't even play one on TV, but my understanding is that because of the agreement with Canada and Mexico, both can be legally operated in the U.S. by a U.S. licensed pilot.

I considered a Canadian plane too. I called AOPA. They said have someone in Canada fly it to the USA as if they were visiting. Then have the plane registered as US plane. True it will take an inspection by a DAR, or Equivalent. Did not sound difficult at all.

I did the opposite. Had a US pilot fly the airplane in, then drove him back across the border. The guy I bought it from immediately sent a form to the faa deregistering the airplane. Then I applied for a Canadian c of r.

One thing to be absolutely sure of, and this caused me a huge headache, make sure the dataplate and c of r say exactly the same thing. If anything is spelled differently then you have a problem. On mine the data plate it said Jodel F11 but on the copy of the faa c of r it said Jodel F-11. Yep, an extra hyphen almost made my new plane an expensive lawn ornament. Transport Canada said nope, that data plate does not go with that c of r.

Fortunately the faa was able to change the c of r on the deregistered airplane to fix the error which had been there since 1969. So make sure everything is squeaky clean.

I did the opposite. Had a US pilot fly the airplane in, then drove him back across the border. The guy I bought it from immediately sent a form to the faa deregistering the airplane. Then I applied for a Canadian c of r.

One thing to be absolutely sure of, and this caused me a huge headache, make sure the dataplate and c of r say exactly the same thing. If anything is spelled differently then you have a problem. On mine the data plate it said Jodel F11 but on the copy of the faa c of r it said Jodel F-11. Yep, an extra hyphen almost made my new plane an expensive lawn ornament. Transport Canada said nope, that data plate does not go with that c of r.

Fortunately the faa was able to change the c of r on the deregistered airplane to fix the error which had been there since 1969. So make sure everything is squeaky clean.

Btw I am sorry to hear about your medical. Every pilot’s nightmare.

swjohnsey said:

I recently imported a RV-4 from Canada that was originally built in the U.S.

It is much easier if you fly it to the U.S. The next owner can fly it legally in the U.S. To get the registration changed to U.S. you must first cancel the Canada registration. Then you need a new N number and airworthiness certificate. This will require at least a condition inspection and a DAR inspection.

The original U.S. airworthiness certificate and operation limitation will aid the DAR.

Click to expand...

There ya go; that is exactly the information I was looking for. Thanks so much.

With regard to the responses pointing out the issues with an American pilot flying the plane home while it is still registered in Canada, I was aware of that issue. I had exactly the same problem when I bought the airplane out of Missouri. I had it flown up by an American ferry pilot. Like me now, the previous owner couldn't deliver as he had lost his medical. Most of the planes I personally know of that have been sold to US buyers have been delivered by their Canadian owners. Not an option for me. Aside from finding a Canadian ferry pilot, the other option is for an American buyer to get a Canadian pilot license. I don't know what the process is, but I know it is quite easy for a Canadian pilot to get an FAA license, and usually we have reciprocity on issues like that. Unfortunately, you have to appear in person at an FAA office to get that license, which is not exactly easy with our border mostly closed. Likewise coming up to retrieve the plane, I suppose. We shall see, I guess.

sblack said:

Btw I am sorry to hear about your medical. Every pilot’s nightmare.

Click to expand...

Thanks. Much appreciated.

DaveO said:

I considered a Canadian plane too. I called AOPA. They said have someone in Canada fly it to the USA as if they were visiting. Then have the plane registered as US plane. True it will take an inspection by a DAR, or Equivalent. Did not sound difficult at all.

Click to expand...

You have to be pretty darn careful about the "as if they were visiting" bit. When I imported my plane, I arranged to meet the pilot at the airport of entry. I showed up early and took care of all the customs stuff before he landed. I was standing there with the customs agent when the plane landed. Unfortunately, my ferry pilot got mixed up somehow, cleared customs by phone and took off for my home airport 40 miles away. In the process, he was asked if he was bring in any goods, etc, and said "no". You know, "visiting". The customs guy ended up calling the tower and having them order the pilot to return, which he did, and two customs guys did everything except beat him with rubber hoses for over an hour before they let him go and let me take delivery of the plane. They happily kept asking him why he was trying to "smuggle an airplane into Canada" despite the fact that was clearly not the intent, as I was standing there with the receipt for the import taxes I had just paid...to one of the guys doing the interrogation. Normally I have the greatest respect for customs officers and other law enforcement, but frankly these guys were just jerks. At any rate, there is a cautionary tale in all that. Customs people on either side of the border really do not like being misled, trust me on this!

FlyinTiger said:

While I'm not able to answer your actual question here's a couple things to consider:

1. A partnership with someone that meets PIC requirements for Canada might be the next step.

2. They act as PIC while you ride along and share the flying experience. Continued flight and fun is preserved while you work out your medical issues.

3. Seek a Canadian partner that might be interested in half ownership now, with an option to buy you out down the road.

Best of luck!

Click to expand...

All good ideas, and appreciated, but I do most of my flying by myself, and have no desire to have to ask someone for a favour every time I want to go up. I know it just wouldn't happen. If my son, who is an active RCAF pilot, was still posted in our city, that would be different, but he is way up north for the next few years. Too much money tied up in airplane and hangar, plus insurance (which is getting quite painful) to hang on for the occasional dual hop. Believe me, I thought about it!

swjohnsey said:

Nope. I ain't a lawyer, didn't even play one on TV, but my understanding is that because of the agreement with Canada and Mexico, both can be legally operated in the U.S. by a U.S. licensed pilot.

Click to expand...

You might want to do a little checking on that. It's not that simple.