AOPA Pilot Magazine - December 2023 - 96

RUDDER & WRENCH
FOR PILOTS.
FROM PILOTS.
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and general aviation.
Wherever you go.
unreasonable or unfair, you probably have
no legal recourse. It's the Wild West.
To survive in this Wild West, you'd better
come packing. You need to impose the
same rules on your shop and mechanics
that the Bureau of Aircraft Repair would
impose if it existed. You need to make
sure that your shop and mechanics play
by those rules. Those rules are simple, and
should be familiar to anyone who has ever
taken a car to the shop for repairs:
* The shop may not perform any work or
order any parts without your explicit
written approval.
* The shop must provide you with a
detailed written cost estimate for labor,
parts, and outside work before you will
approve work or parts.
3%
Cash Back1
Select
AOPA Partners2-4
CASH BACK1
APPLIED AS STATEMENT CREDIT.
QUARTERLY BONUS POINT CAP OF 2,500 POINTS4
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AOPA.org/creditcard
to learn more
* The shop may not exceed any of its estimates
without stopping work, providing
you with a revised estimate and the reason
for the change, and obtained your
explicit written approval to proceed.
A handful of the most professional
shops we work with will follow those
rules even without being asked to do so,
simply because it's the right thing to do.
However, most shops won't adhere to this
protocol unless you require them to do so
and keep them on a short leash. Any shop
that is unwilling to follow these commonsense
rules is one you simply shouldn't do
business with.
Unfortunately, in my experience,
most aircraft owners are uncomfortable
imposing these rules on their shops and
mechanics, or declining work that the
shop recommends but the owner considers
unnecessary and too costly. But it's what
you need to do if you're going to survive in
the Wild West.
* Certain points and purchases restrictions apply, see full Rewards Terms and
Conditions for full details at AOPA.org/creditcard
editcard. 1. Rewards points can be
redeemed for Cash Back or other redemption items provided through AOPA Pilot
Rewards. A Cash Back redemption is applied as a statement credit. The statement
credit will reduce your balance but you are still required to make at least your
minimum payment. A minimum of 2,500 points is needed to redeem for Cash Back.
Values for non-cash back redemption items such as merchandise, gift cards,
and travel may vary. 2. Advertising, Aviation Insurance, PAC Donations and AFI
Donations are excluded. Visit www.commercebank.com/aopapilotrewards for
complete details on exclusions and bonus point categories. 3. Participating AOPA
partners include: Aero-Space Reports, Aircraft Spruce & Specialty Co., Jeppesen®,
Pilot Workshops, SiriusXM®, Sporty's® Pilot Shop. The listed AOPA partners
are in no way affiliated with Commerce Bank, nor are the listed merchants to be
considered sponsors or co-sponsors of this program. Use of merchant names and/
or logos is by the permission of each respective merchant and all trademarks are
the property of their respective owners. 4. Please note that merchants self-select
the category in which transactions will be listed and some merchants may be owned
by other companies, therefore transactions may not be counted in the category
you might expect. Purchases made using Near Field Communication (NFC), virtual
wallets, or similar technology may not be eligible for bonus points.
Maintenance clubs
Lately, prompted by GA's acute mechanic
shortage, I've been thinking about what
might be a viable alternative to the current
time-and-materials system. This
concept might not be suitable for every
aircraft owner but could be very attractive
to many of us.
Imagine a group of 20 GA aircraft
owners based at the same airport forming
a maintenance club. The club hires two
experienced A&P/IA mechanics to work
exclusively on club members' airplanes
96
AOPA PILOT / December 2023
and pays each of them a salary of, say,
$130,000 per year-roughly 50 percent
more than they could make working at a
conventional shop. The club secures a hangar
and equips it with the basic equipment
and furnishings (air compressor, wing
jacks, shelving, and more).
Each club member pays a fixed monthly
membership fee-say $1,200/month
-sufficient to cover the mechanics' salaries,
the hangar rent, and any club
administrative and overhead expenses.
Perhaps members who own more complex,
maintenance-intensive airplanes might
pay a bit more, and those who own simpler
airplanes a bit less. The club's board
of directors would establish a fee structure
that's fair for everyone. Each member
is responsible for the cost of any necessary
parts, but would not pay any hourly fees
for labor.
Club membership would cover
the labor cost for most scheduled and
unscheduled maintenance, including the
annual inspection and associated repairs.
However, major outside work such as
engine overhaul or avionics refit would not
be covered, although the club might be able
to negotiate favorable rates for such things.
It seems to me such a maintenance
arrangement could offer owners much
more control over their maintenance, far
more predictable maintenance costs, and
quicker response when squawks arise
and unscheduled maintenance is needed.
It would be a great deal for the club's
mechanics, too. Sounds like a win-win to
me. Any takers?
mike.busch@savvyaviation.com
savvyaviation.com
Ask the A&Ps /
Mike Busch, Paul New, and Colleen
Sterling answer your toughest
aviation maintenance questions on
our Ask the A&Ps podcast. Submit
questions to podcasts@aopa.org
aopa.org/ask-the-a-and-ps
http://www.AOPA.org/creditcard http://www.savvyaviation.com http://www.AOPA.org/creditcard http://www.commercebank.com/aopapilotrewards http://www.aopa.org/ask-the-a-and-ps
AOPA Pilot Magazine - December 2023

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of AOPA Pilot Magazine - December 2023
