A lifelong aviation enthusiast who joined&nbsp;AIN&nbsp;in 2007, Curt came to&nbsp;the publication&nbsp;from the broadcast industry where he was a national science and technology television reporter and producer. He writes on the FBO field, aviation finance, and sustainable aviation and occasionally contributes to&nbsp;AIN&nbsp;sister publication&nbsp;Business Jet Traveler. Curt was a member of the AINtv reporting staff that won the 2008 Aerospace Journalist of the Year award for Best Airshow Daily. That same year, he was a finalist for another AJOYA award. He earned an AJOYA for Best Business Aviation Submission in 2018 and was a finalist in that category in 2021. He received the National Air Transportation Association’s&nbsp; Aviation Journalist Award in 2012 and won a Pegasus Sapphire Business Aviation Award for outstanding journalism in 2021.
Before joining AIN, Curt worked with&nbsp;Consumer Reports’ television division, CRTV, and for several local television news staffs. An honors graduate of the State University of New York at Stony Brook, he earned a master’s degree in broadcast journalism from Boston University in 1995. Curt lives in New York State with his wife and two young sons.

Senior Editor

Curt Epstein

Bombardier manufactures a variety of business aircraft models, provides engineering, and aircraft maintenance services.

For the first time since Bombardier initiated its Certified Pre-Owned (CPO) aircraft program in 2021, the airframer has one of the examples on display at an airshow. In its EBACE 2023&nbsp;static display (AD_09) this week, the Canadian OEM is showing off a 2012 vintage Challenger 605 that&nbsp;has been factory-refurbished through the program.
While some third-party companies have offered remanufactured aircraft programs in the past, Bombardier (Booth K40)&nbsp;is the first manufacturer to do so. “What we have done is created a brand new category of preowned aircraft,” said Paul Sislian, executive v-p for aftermarket services and strategy. “The way we have done that is by offering a full turnkey solution that offers complete peace of mind to our customers.”
With 18 aircraft delivered thus far—including a selection of Challenger 300s, 604s, 605s, and Globals—CPO aircraft are now listed as a distinct category by aircraft appraisal analysts such as Aircraft Bluebook, Vref, and AircraftPost. In terms of value, those aircraft are being compared to versions five years&nbsp;newer.
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According to Sislian, with an average of 460 used Bombardier aircraft transacting over the past five years, the most important factor in purchasing a candidate 10- to 15-year-old aircraft for the CPO program is pedigree. Once reacquired from the owner, the aircraft undergoes a complete configuration check and a Level 3 inspection. All required maintenance, including service bulletins, is done by Bombardier technicians.
The aircraft then receives new paint and a complete interior refurbishment, including upgrading to the latest technologies in cabin management and connectivity. Avionics are updated as well—the Challenger 605 on display this week at EBACE features the Collins Pro Line 21 advanced suite and Ka-Band connectivity. Like all of the CPO program aircraft, this Challenger has its engines and APU enrolled in care programs.
The process is so extensive, Sislian said,&nbsp;that “when customers come in, they feel like they are in a brand new aircraft.” He added that all the CPO aircraft come with “an exclusive one-year warranty, tip-to-tail. We also put the aircraft on Smart Parts, which means you have a corrosion warranty.”

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