Literal "trade a plane"

[k9medic]

We have all heard the saying "buy a plane that meets 90% of your needs..."

Had anybody ever put together a literal " trade a plane" type setup?

For instance, I have a Cherokee 6. 90% of the time it does exactly what I want it to do but there are times that I would love to be able to get someplace faster since I don't need to bring 5 other people with me.

Many insurance policies have open pilot clauses so why not take advantage of something like that?

 

[Shawn]

Because beyond just a handshake over a beer agreement with a buddy you would essentially be renting your plane for compensation (in the form of bartered use of the other plane).

Probably not an FAA issue, but good luck with insurance on that.

 

[Greg Bockelman]

Open pilot clauses typically protect only the owner, not the non-owner pilot.

 

[flyingcheesehead]

We have all heard the saying "buy a plane that meets 90% of your needs..."

Had anybody ever put together a literal " trade a plane" type setup?

For instance, I have a Cherokee 6. 90% of the time it does exactly what I want it to do but there are times that I would love to be able to get someplace faster since I don't need to bring 5 other people with me.

Many insurance policies have open pilot clauses so why not take advantage of something like that?

I wouldn't go with the open pilot clause, it's much better to have all pilots as named insured on both policies.

I would also put together a formal agreement, in both directions, to make sure that all parties agreed upon and understood all the parameters of said agreement.

However, I would happily enter into such an agreement with someone who knew how to fly and had an airplane I needed or wanted to use.

Anyone in southeastern Wisconsin want to trade some 310 time for some Mooney time? I'm going to need more room and useful load for family trips before too long, but I don't really want to sell the Mooney because eventually it'll meet my primary mission again and it's in darn good shape (and relatively new). It's also cheap enough to operate that I can just go poke holes in the sky and not care about the cost of operation.

I'd also love to have access to a more recreational airplane - Swift, Super Decathlon, Super Cub/Husky, Lake or other amphib...

That said, I come from the background of having been in a really good flying club for 14 years and having a plane with a partner, and shared ownership and use of airplanes has been very good to me. I say, go for it! But don't do it over a handshake and a beer. Too many horror stories out there of what can happen when there's not a formal agreement.