De-Plane

[gasman]

Then he got ripped off by the recycle company.

He could have removed the data plate and removed the plane from the FAA records and local county and donated the structure only to a school for students to practice on.

The motor and prop could be sold without logbooks. The panel, brakes, motor mount and fiberglass could be sold and you could recover at least 1/3rd of what a 6A is worth in today's (want only a 7) market.

[Sam Buchanan]

Originally Posted by gasman

He could have removed the data plate and removed the plane from the FAA records and local county and donated the structure only to a school for students to practice on.

But he didn't...and that is entirely his prerogative. I won't second-guess his decision because I don't know the personal reasons he had for scrapping his plane. I do sympathize with him and may do something similar when I decide to retire from flying my RV-6. Taking an experimental aircraft out of service instead of selling it isn't unheard of in our corner of aviation--the stripped airframe parts usually ends up in the rafters or corner of a dusty hangar instead of featured in a YouTube video. When the resale value of the plane is insignificant in comparison to financial/legal risk the decision to scrap can be justified.

[catmandu]

Advertise your airplane, meet a good soul, sell them your plane. Your building effort deserves that.

Disclaimer: I am a good soul (but have a RV-6A already, sorry).

[Sam Buchanan]

Originally Posted by catmandu

Advertise your airplane, meet a good soul, sell them your plane. Your building effort deserves that.

Disclaimer: I am a good soul (but have a RV-6A already, sorry).

Thank you.

However, I know many good souls, some of whom might like to have my plane. But if I have similar reasons for scrapping the plane as the builder in the video, the goodness of a buyer's soul will be immaterial.

One of my homebuilts was involved in a crash that demolished the plane but amazingly the pilot (a close friend of mine) survived nearly unscathed. But that was a very sobering experience that lead me down the path of serious reflection on whether or not I ever want to potentially be in that (or worse...) position again. The $$ value of the plane is really diminished under those circumstances.

[catmandu]

I very much respect your position, Sam.

But, as the kids say: "Wrongful Death Lawyers always be Lawyering!" Planes, trains, automobiles, it just does not matter. MY life is too short, and my fortune too small, to worry about such things.

Nearer and dearer to my heart is the maintenance and owner assisted condition inspections I perform on my bought flying experimental. Especially where family occupants are concerned. So I guess we are somewhat in the same boat, just different seas?

[RV-4]

Why doesn't the OP donate the airplane to a museum or charity and get a tax receipt in the process...This way everybody wins...or

Sell or give it to a Canadian up north...we don't have these stupid laws in Canada...

This is getting overboard when someone has to destroy something of value like an airplane just because of potential lawsuits..

[rv7boy]

I have a good friend who did donate his EAB to an aviation museum. He told me he removed the electronic ignition and disabled the spark plug wires just in case somebody tried to start it. I think the museum was a 501C3 and he got a receipt for a contribution to charity. I’m not sure I could do that but he remains comfortable with his decision. (It’s not an RV.)

[rv8ch]

Selling the aircraft internationally does not solve the problem - it could one day be sold back in the USA and then the risk returns.

If your estate is such that $70k is a lot of money, you most likely will not be the target of a lawsuit. If $70k is not a lot of money for you, part it out and scrap the airframe.

[rph142]

I bought my engine from a guy that was parting out his One Design for this very reason. He sent me a picture of his nice looking plane disassembled to the component level on the floor of his hangar. It?s sad to see, but I can understand why high net worth individuals wouldn?t want to deal with the risk. In a way it?s like buying insurance.

[9GT]

I am not a lawyer but I know there are some here on the forum that could give a good opinion. What is the value, liability wise, if you register the plane in an LLC? I see this on a few builders sites.