How old is to old for a Lear jet?

Question

I am am a up and comeing business man (Salesman) and a most have on any business men's favrite things list is the Lear Jet. I was looking at the prices and new ones can coast alot of green but used one are more in my prices range. When I buy I don't mine buying used. As long as it's safe & in good working order.

Here is my question:

How old is to old for a Lear Jets?

Befor it become unsafe to fly.

Answer 1

as long as you can afford it..you are never too old

Answer 2

i would  say 5-10 years old but im not sure

and to the person above hes talking about the aircraft not himself

btw please add details on how much a used one is, i want a priv jet one day

Answer 3

The Douglas DC-3/C-47/R4D/Li-2/Dakota (and all of its many variants) first went into service with American Airlines in 1936.  Some of them are still flying.  

It isn't the age that kills most commercial aircraft it is the economics of keeping one safe and up to date.

Answer 4

Your question  is tough to answer without knowing your budget, both acquisition and operating. I've been a corporate pilot for decades and Lear's were my first jet to fly. More than two thousand hours in the little "executive mailing tubes". Managed several flight departments operating helicopters to Boeings. Shoot me an IM, I'll help you out.

Hey everybody, I offered this clown the wealth of my knowledge about his question and he had the gaul to block me because he didn't like the answer. Waste your time trying to help the joker if you want but he sure won't appreciate it. hahahahahahahahahahahahaaaaa

Answer 5

I don't think safety is the main issue.  As long as the airplane has been properly maintained, they can fly until the owner gets sick of paying for it.  Before you buy any airplane, it will go through a pre-buy inspection.  You'll hire mechanics to inspect the airplane for any problems and to review the aircraft logbooks for any red flags or discrepancies.  This is also a good time to look for any time-limited ADs (Airworthiness Directives).  These help keep airplanes, especially older airplanes, safe to continue operations despite their age.  But, for example, you find a plane with 14,000 hours on it, but it is due for an incredibly extensive AD inspection at 15,000 hours, that inspection may very well cost more than the airplane itself.

The bigger issue than age is operating costs.  Older planes use more fuel.  At some point, components start failing more often.  There are backup systems to any safety-critical item, so repair costs are really a bigger concern than safety.  Older airplanes have a way of accumulating huge maintenance bills.  Don't look just at purchase price.  Look at hourly and annual operating costs.  You may find that even though a newer Lear (or any other brand, for that matter) may be two to three times more expensive to buy, the difference in operating cost will make up for the difference in price in a year or two.

How many hours a year are you planning on flying?  There may be major maintenance issues if the plane flies less than 150-200 hours a year.  That's a funny mystery about airplanes - they more they sit, the more they need maintenance.  Airplanes like to fly, not park.

There is a lot of other research to do before buying a plane.  While Lears certainly have a wonderful reputation for their performance, there are many other planes that may fit your missions better.  For example, if your trips average 100-400 miles, a turboprop would be a better fit.  You'll just have to map out the kind of trip profile you expect and how much cabin space you need.  Maybe something like a CitationJet would make more sense... or, moving toward the other end of the spectrum, a Hawker.  Keep in mind that something like a Lear 25 is considered a "Stage 2" airplane, meaning it is much louder than the current "Stage 3" airplanes.  Many airports only allow Stage 3 compliant airplanes.  That list of airports is only getting longer.

I can't give you any thorough recommendations in a forum like this.  I can only give you a little food for thought.  Happy hunting!

Answer 6

a lear jet should be safe for 30 years if well taken care of

Answer 7

Safety is not a function of age, but of how well an aircraft has been maintained. Any 30 year old Lear that has been well taken care of, and not used as a freighter should be good enough.

Answer 8

There's really no Age in terms of Years.............it's Hours on the Airframe as well as engines lets say

3 Million is your price range

http://www.aso.com/i.aso3/aircraft_view....

there's your Lear, each engine has 4500 hours on it and now Oh my, they're nearing Overhaul. Realize the Overhaul on a jet engine is around the 500,000 Price range. so you just spent 4 million instead of three. Airframes dont last forever either. most get scrapped after 20,000-40,000 hours or so dependiing on manufacturer set limits. Fuel prices......hmmm

Jet Fuel is about 4.00 a gallon to 5.00 depending where you buy it. each gallon weighs around 6.3-6.6 pounds depending on temperature and who made it so we'll use the low end of the scale on each

4.00 and 6.3 pounds per gallon

now lets say you have a business meating in New York and you live in Los Angeles. you'll burn about 5,000-5,500 pounds of fuel reserves will mean you need to buy more then that but that's what your actual "Cost" will be

lets do a little math

5,000/6.3=793.x*x

so 793 gallons  times 4=3200 dollars to fly yourself from LA to New york..... add another 500 dollars to that in maintnence and repair fees over the long run and add in the 3 million you have a nice business airplane for 10 years or so untill the air frame has too many hours and needs to be scrapped. if you take all this into account a 20 year old Lear with 6000 hours will last you another 10-20 years at these prices.........if you can afford it.......go for it!