Make sure you have the RIGHT deal on the table
Plane Data, Inc. provides certified aircraft appraisals for lenders that help your bank make high-quality aircraft loans, manage collateral risk, and move deals to closing with confidence. As a member of the National Aircraft Finance Association (NAFA), we align our valuations with the standards trusted across aviation lending.
The Problem With Financing on Assumptions
Your bank’s lending policy is built around loan-to-value — so the value itself has to be right. Every aircraft deal looks clean from a distance and shows blemishes on closer inspection: unreported damage history, liens that weren’t caught before closing, or a residual value that doesn’t match reality once the aircraft is actually inspected. We’ve helped dozens of lenders and banks nationwide make solid, profitable aircraft loans while keeping that risk in check.
Needing help with the Ins and Outs of Aircraft Financing?
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We've helped dozens of lenders and banks across the nation make solid, profitable aircraft loans while minimizing their risk.
- How to Identify Aircraft Financing and Evaluation Risks
- Common Areas Where Fraud can Exist
- A General Overview of the Aircraft Appraisal Industry
- How to Vet Your Aircraft Financing Resources
- Which Aircraft Valuation Methedology is Right for You
- How to Identify & Address Questionable or "High Risk" Assets & Projects
- And More!
How Our Aircraft Appraisals for Lenders Reduce Risk and Protect Your Loans
A certified, in-person field inspection confirms the aircraft matches what’s represented before you fund the loan. Our aircraft appraisals for lenders give your credit team a clear, verified basis for every decision.
We help make sure liens are identified and addressed before closing, not discovered after.
Periodic reappraisals help you confirm the aircraft is being properly maintained and that residual value expectations still hold.
Every appraisal states its Scope of Work clearly, so your underwriting file holds up to audit or examiner review. Every report is prepared in adherence to PAAO and USPAP standards, giving your file added credibility with auditors and examiners.
Frequently Asked Questions
A desktop appraisal is built entirely from data supplied by others — logbooks, photos, and specs the seller or borrower provides. I physically inspect the aircraft, verify the logbooks against the airframe and engines, and confirm the condition, damage history, and equipment that actually drive value. For a loan decision, that difference matters: it’s the gap between an estimate and a defensible number your credit committee can rely on.
Most bank lending policy is built around loan-to-value ratios tied to a market value or forced liquidation value determination. My report gives you a supportable, documented value conclusion — with the inspection findings and comparable data behind it — so your LTV calculation is grounded in verified facts rather than a broker’s asking price or an owner’s self-reported condition.
Market value assumes a reasonable exposure period and a willing, informed buyer and seller. Liquidation value assumes a forced or expedited sale — the number you’d need if you had to repossess and move the asset quickly. Most collateral files call for both figures; I can provide either or both depending on your underwriting requirements.
Most lenders want a valuation dated within 90 days of closing, though your specific investor or regulatory guidelines may set a tighter window. I can turn most engagements around quickly enough to meet a closing timeline — reach out with your date and I’ll confirm.
Yes. My reports are written to a professional standard that can be relied upon by the addressed party and any parties explicitly identified as intended users in the engagement letter. Let me know upfront if the report needs to support a syndicated loan or will be shared with a participant bank, so I can address that in the engagement terms.
I personally conduct and oversee the inspection. On occasion I bring in another PAAO Certified Appraiser to assist with gathering field data, but that work stays within the PAAO-certified appraisal process — it is never handed off to a local mechanic or an unrelated third party filling in a checklist.