Whats the odds?????

B

bahama flier

Pre-takeoff checklist
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bahama flier
I purchased my Cherokee Six about 12 years ago. I was told the aircraft was once used to smuggle drugs, and was repossessed in the Caribbean for non payment.

The seller told me maybe I should change the tail number in case I ran across the person who had the plane taken from him.

I said what are the odds.... on my 80th trip to the Bahamas, I had a knock on my door at my rental house, and guess who was there,,, yes ,,, he said I had his stolen Cherokee Six, he was at the airport and remembered the tail number when he saw it,,, 13 years earlier it had in fact been his.

He was not sore at me, and readily said it was now mine, but some interesting stories about how it was taken from him. We had some laughs and all he wanted was a ride in it sometimes for old times sake.

What are the odds......????
 
bahama flier said:
I purchased my Cherokee Six about 12 years ago. I was told the aircraft was once used to smuggle drugs, and was repossessed in the Caribbean for non payment.

The seller told me maybe I should change the tail number in case I ran across the person who had the plane taken from him.

I said what are the odds.... on my 80th trip to the Bahamas, I had a knock on my door at my rental house, and guess who was there,,, yes ,,, he said I had his stolen Cherokee Six, he was at the airport and remembered the tail number when he saw it,,, 13 years earlier it had in fact been his.

He was not sore at me, and readily said it was now mine, but some interesting stories about how it was taken from him. We had some laughs and all he wanted was a ride in it sometimes for old times sake.

What are the odds......????
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The fact he knew where you were renting is bizzarre enough....:eek:
 
Keep an eye on it for awhile. I'd hate to see him grab it and go.. "For old times sake."
 
tell him you'll trade him a ride his plane for some coke
 
bahama flier said:
I purchased my Cherokee Six about 12 years ago. I was told the aircraft was once used to smuggle drugs, and was repossessed in the Caribbean for non payment.

The seller told me maybe I should change the tail number in case I ran across the person who had the plane taken from him.

I said what are the odds.... on my 80th trip to the Bahamas, I had a knock on my door at my rental house, and guess who was there,,, yes ,,, he said I had his stolen Cherokee Six, he was at the airport and remembered the tail number when he saw it,,, 13 years earlier it had in fact been his.

He was not sore at me, and readily said it was now mine, but some interesting stories about how it was taken from him. We had some laughs and all he wanted was a ride in it sometimes for old times sake.

What are the odds......????
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I don't beleive in conincidences when it comes to things like that. He could have easily tracked you via Flightaware.

Question for Henning: Are packets of blow, sealed in plastic, stuffed inside the insulation of an aircraft, still good after 13 years?
 
bahama flier said:
I purchased my Cherokee Six about 12 years ago. I was told the aircraft was once used to smuggle drugs, and was repossessed in the Caribbean for non payment.
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Like in Airplane Repo? He probably still has the keys then.

Keep an eye on it for awhile. I'd hate to see him grab it and go.. "For old times sake."
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I would be careful,can't believe he wouldn't be upset about loosing the plane. Seems like the odds where on his side.
 
You think he went through all that trouble of knocking on your door just to chat about the plane?
 
I hate cocaine. I just like the way it smells.
 
I hear Cherokee six can really handle the... bumps
 
you should still change your N-number. I had a neighbor who bought a twin comanche at a drug auction and later flew it to his home in mexoco. He had 3 occasions he was met by DEA in arizone and they took a knife to his interior. Should have changed the number. can't really blame the DEA though, you know those 5-ft-tall 70-year-old italian-americans can be pretty intimidating.
 
SixPapaCharlie said:
I hear Cherokee six can really handle the... bumps
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Well played.In all seriousness if you would of told him you were the 2nd owner im sure you would fair a lot better in his mind. I mean one white line, I mean white lie never hurt anyone. Right?
 
Yep. Stay alert and keep your eyes open. In a situation like this you don't want to get behind the 8 ball
 
Cpt_Kirk said:
Keep an eye on it for awhile. I'd hate to see him grab it and go.. "For old times sake."
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From a legal perspective, I imagine the former owner received a settlement from the insurance company and no longer has any legal claim to the airplane, so I wouldn't worry much about it. You might even ask to see what he's flying now that he bought with the insurance money, since that's probably how he got to the Bahamas.

Nevertheless, changing the N-number might still be a good idea. You never know what watch lists the old/current one might still be on.
 
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Ron Levy said:
From a legal perspective, I imagine the former owner received a settlement from the insurance company...
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what kind of insurance can I buy that will pay off if my plane is reposessed ?
 
JHW said:
what kind of insurance can I buy that will pay off if my plane is reposessed ?
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None, there is no insurance against you not paying your bills, in fact the lien holder will be a named insured and may get the first check depending on your state.

You could crash it before the repo man takes it though, then you get declared value.
 
Henning said:
None, there is no insurance against you not paying your bills, in fact the lien holder will be a named insured and may get the first check depending on your state.

You could crash it before the repo man takes it though, then you get declared value.
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If you're behind on payments the entire insurance payout could go to the lien-holder and if you did it intentionally you'll go to jail for insurance fraud. Not the best outcome..
 
Was he one of the drug smugglers? Or a rental guy who rented it to the smugglers?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
vdehart said:
If you're behind on payments the entire insurance payout could go to the lien-holder and if you did it intentionally you'll go to jail for insurance fraud. Not the best outcome..
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Fraud has to be proven, easier said than done. With only a hull claim, the insurance won't bother.
 
Did you ask if he had the Original Log Books for the Plane and Engine?
 
JHW said:
what kind of insurance can I buy that will pay off if my plane is reposessed ?
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Sorry -- didn't read carefully enough. I thought it had been stolen by drug runners, not repossessed. But if it was repossessed, the former owner still has no legal claim on it.
 
Henning said:
You could crash it before the repo man takes it though, then you get declared value.
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You could try that, but I've yet to see a bank which doesn't require that it be the first payee on the insurance. In that case, the bank gets the lesser of the declared value or the outstanding balance, and the owner gets only the residual if the balance is less than the value.
 
I have the aircraft fully insured, its paid for not repo worthy, the former owner says he will give me the original logs books, he works and has a business on the island, says he has not flown since the plane was taken from him, seems OK, but I can't worry about it, if it goes,,, life still goes on,,,, heck, I had an $80,000.00 boat stolen from me six months ago,,, no insurance,,, I am still alive and looking for another boat,,, it did P me off a great deal.

I love my Cherokee Six, it has served me very well for the last 12 years, I would really miss it, but if it goes, I will find another "Six" for sure. You would be hard pressed to find an airport in the Bahamas that does not have a Cherokee Six tied down, there are eight regulars at my airport, Great harbor Cay, Berry Islands.
 
I have always wondered what kind of stories we would hear if planes could talk. I am sure there would be some very interesting reading. I jumpseated on a DC-6 that was once owned by Howard Hughes. It was flying frieght in Alaska at the time. Hard to imagine that I sat in the same seat and held the same controls that Howard Hughes once held. And yes, I used hand sanitizer afterwards......
 
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