The Hillsboro Flying Club is looking for leaseback airplanes!

We are expanding our fleet of three well-maintained and well-cared for airplanes, through a new leaseback program, started in 2017. If you are an airplane owner, and seeking ways to cover your expenses or stay on top of your airplane's maintenance, our program may be for you!

See the FAQ section below for answers to commonly asked questions.

See our leaseback contract for the full leaseback agreement.

What are we looking for?

We will consider ALL aircraft that are ASEL (airplanes, single-engine, land) category and class. However, we are currently most interested in airplanes that:

  • Have less than 200 hp (airplanes with 200 hp or more are "high performance", and not all our members have an endorsement for that.
  • Are not complex (rectractable landing gear & flaps)
  • Are not taildraggers (few in our club have an endorsement for that)
  • Examples of airplanes we are looking for:
    • Piper Warrior, or Cherokee
    • Cessna 152, 172, or 175
    • Grumman AA5B (Tiger, Cheetah, or Traveler)
    • (Preferred, not required) IFR-capable airplanes

How the Hillsboro Flying Club cares for your airplane

Below are the highlights of how our leaseback program works. The Hillsboro Flying Club provides the following services for the leaseback airplanes in our fleet.

  • Provide online scheduling, monthly billing, and revenue collection for your airplane
  • Arrange for a tie-down space for your airplane if needed (ie, you don't have a hangar already)
  • Regulate the use of your airplane to comply with:
    • Your stated limitations
    • Federal regulations
    • Insurance requirements
    • Manufacturer recommendations
    • Hillsboro Flying Club By-laws
  • Routine maintenance
  • Scheduling of and ferrying to non-routine maintenance
  • Purchase insurance for your airplane
  • Provide a monthly statement to you (owner) showing flight revenue earned minus expenses

What are the benefits to you, the airplane owner?

  • Increased utilization - a frequently used airplane is healthier than an airplane that sits unused in a hangar.
  • Cover your costs - split the expense of airplane ownership over several people, instead of shouldering all the financial burden yourself.
  • Thorough maintenance - because of our status as a club, our airplanes undergo 100-hour inspections. We stay on top of all maintenance, ADs, SBs, etc. to ensure the health of our fleet and the safety of our members. We will perform routine maintenance that the FAA allows us to, and we will schedule all other non-routine maintenance for your airplane. We will ferry your airplane to the shop for you.
  • Tax incentives - these will depend on your tax filing status and your circumstances. Consult your tax preparer or accountant for accurate information.

I'm interested! How do I get started?

If you're interested in learning more about leasing your airplane to the club, fill out this brief questionnaire and a member of the Board of Directors will contact you to answer any questions you might have and discuss next steps:


FAQ's

Q - How long is a leaseback agreement?
A - There is no end date on our agreements. Either side may terminate the agreement with 60 days advanced notice. We ask for 60 days to give members with open reservations on your airplane a reasonable amount of time to make other arrangements.


Q - Can I make money with a leaseback?
A - The revenue your leaseback generates will depend on how many hours it is flown, and how much expense you need to cover for each hour of flight. Airplanes that cost less per hour to rent, will fly more. And airplane owners that have lower operational costs will put more of the flight revenue they earn into their pocket. Some of the factors that you should consider are listed below:

  • Ownership - do you own your airplane or make payments to the bank that you need to cover?
  • Operational costs - the higher the cost to operate your airplane, the higher the hourly rate will need to be. This will impact how much it is flown.
  • Flight limitations - what kind of limitations do you intend to put on your airplane? Will you allow it to land on grass runways? If not, it may fly less than if you allow that.
  • Engine reserves - these are reserves that you as the owner collect to pay for the future replacement or overhaul of the engine. Do you already have reserves in the bank? Or are you starting with a zero reserve balance? This will determine how much money you need to include in the hourly rate for engine reserves. The more you collect, the more your airplane will cost to rent, and the less likely it is to be flown.



Q - How much should I charge per hour for club members to fly my airplane?
A - We've developed a calculator to assist you in determining what hourly rate to charge for your airplane. The calculator is meant only to provide guidance, and help evaluate the consequences of different rates. The ultimate responsibility for choosing an hourly rate is yours, as the airplane owner. The calculator is available as a google spreadsheet, here. It should be fairly self-explanatory, but contact Dustin Woodhouse if you have questions or would like additional guidance.

HFC leaseback hourly rate calculator


Q - How am I paid the flight revenue I earn from my leaseback airplane?
A - Billing occurs at the beginning of each month, for the previous month. Members then have 30 days to pay their bill. 30 days after our billing cycle, we will send a check to you for the flight revenue that your airplane generated during that billing cycle, minus expenses and fees. For example, on July 1st, the billing cycle for June begins, and invoices are sent out to our members. They have till the end of July to pay their invoice amount. On August 1, we will send you a check for monies owed to you for June flight time minus June expenses.


Q - Are there tax benefits to a leaseback?
A - This will depend greatly on the individual circumstances of each airplane owner, and their tax reporting status. If you are willing and able to depreciate your airplane on your taxes, you will receive a greater financial benefit with a leaseback. You will need to consult with your tax preparer or accountant for an accurate answer to this question.


Q - I've heard horror stories about how leaseback airplanes are treated. What kind of treatment will my airplane receive in your club?
A - HFC is a club, not a rental shop. We are a tight-knit community of pilots. We take the safety of our members very seriously, and hold high currency standards for ourselves that are even more stringent, in some aspects, than the FARs. We meet monthly to discuss the health and maintenance of each of our airplanes. Your airplane would be treated as if it were one of our own. At the conclusion of each flight, our members report their flights via an online form. This form includes a "cry" (aka "squawk") section, where they can call out anything they observe as an anomaly. We respond to all cries within hours or days. We are so confident that your airplane will be well cared for, that we offer the following assurance in writing in our leaseback agreement under paragraph "e" of section 8 ("RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE HILLSBORO FLYING CLUB"):

Return Aircraft to Owner at the end of the term of this Agreement in substantially the same condition as when it was delivered to HFC, ordinary wear and tear excepted.



Q - Will you provide insurance for my airplane?
A - We will purchase, at your expense, an insurance policy with limits that match our owned aircraft. The cost of this policy will be amortized over 12 months, and 1/12th will be deducted from your monthly flight revenue each month. If your revenue is not enough to cover the insurance premium in a given month, you will be responsible to pay the shortage for that month to the club. Contact the club for more information about policy limits and premiums.

Our insurance provider has given the following guidance for estimating the cost of a policy to cover a new leaseback aircraft:

  • $2000 for liability
  • 6% of declared hull value for a hull premium

So if, for example, your policy is for an airplane declared at $40k hull value, your policy will cost ($2k+($40k*.06)=) $4,400/yr.


Q - Will I have access to my airplane?
A - You will have access to your airplane, but under the same scheduling constraints as our other members. You will need to schedule your airplane via our online scheduling tool. If your airplane is already booked for a date you want to fly it, you will not be able to override the reservation.


Q - As the owner of a leaseback airplane, can I "block out" certain dates or periods from scheduling for my personal use?
A - Yes, you can do this. However keep in mind that the more your airplane is available to our members, the more flight time your airplane is likely to get and the more revenue your leaseback will generate.