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Here's my thoughts on the annual cost issue, I got my IA primarily for the sake of making aircraft ownership affordable- basically for my own coupe. I work for an airline now (no longer teaching at the A&P school- ask me why off the list later). I dont have to charge an arm & leg for an annual, plus I make (allow) the owner do most of the "work". The guys that do it for 100% of their living have to juggle a few variables to keep in business, and keep a good flow of customers. Too high of a price, no one comes back. Too low, and you get taken advantage of. Even though the FARs state that it is the OWNER/OPERATOR's responsibility to maintain a current status of AD's and such, it usually falls on the IA to do it every year. And, when the jail cell door slams shut, it doesnt slam shut on the owner, but on the IA who signed off the annual.....The D.O.T. is all over the FAA's butt for not "catching" bad guys- So- a fair way to do it is to agree beforehand what the annual is going to consist of, and how much it will cost. All the stuff listed in FAR 43 appendix D should be included in the basic cost of the annual. This should include the AD search. That includes wheelbearing inspection, timing check, plug check and compression as a minimum. Also, make sure your IA is draining your carb bowl. I will do all of the above, plus the inspection for $300.00. Bear in mind 2 things- first, the owner has done all the work. He must unpanel the plane, take out the interior and get it completely ready for me to inspect. Secondly, I dont do this for a living. It's gravy for me and I usually have the owner buy me a part that I might need or pay some tie-down fees or pay part of my insurance if it's due. All of the above for $600 is not a bad deal if the IA is doing all the unpaneling and opening up/closeup. You then must agree on a reasonable price if there are any squawks to be fixed. I allow the owner to fix his own squawks and charge a nominal fee for the time it takes for me to supervise them. If you pay the A&P to do it- the going shop rate is $65.00 per hour, plus parts. Make sure your A&P is not marking up the parts though. check the catalogs, and insist that you order the parts or pay the lower price if you can find it cheaper. The key is to have agreed on this before the annual begins Jan Z Fresno, CA IA ==^================================================================ EASY UNSUBSCRIBE click here: http://topica.com/u/?aVxiLm.aVzvvT Or send an email To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] This email was sent to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] T O P I C A -- Register now to manage your mail! http://www.topica.com/partner/tag02/register ==^================================================================
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