{
  "slug": "aircraft-depreciation",
  "title": "Aircraft Depreciation Calculator",
  "heading": "Aircraft Depreciation Calculator",
  "category": "financial",
  "url": "https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/aircraft-depreciation",
  "summary": "Estimate annual value loss and future resale value for a piston aircraft.",
  "description": "Unlike cars, well-maintained piston aircraft don't depreciate on a smooth exponential curve — value tends to hold flatter than cars for the first years, then drops in steps around major maintenance events (approaching TBO with no overhaul reserve, upcoming avionics obsolescence) and rises again right after a fresh overhaul or major avionics upgrade. This calculator uses a simplified straight-line-with-floor model based on a typical annual depreciation rate to estimate value over a holding period, while flagging that a fresh engine or panel upgrade should be added back to book value rather than assumed to depreciate from day one.",
  "formula": "Value after n years = purchase price × (1 − annual rate)^n, floored at a minimum residual percentage of original price.",
  "dateModified": "2026-09-30",
  "run_url": "https://www.revenuelab.fyi/api/public/calc?tool=aircraft-depreciation",
  "inputs": [
    {
      "id": "purchasePrice",
      "label": "Purchase price",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 85000,
      "unit": "$",
      "min": 1000,
      "max": null
    },
    {
      "id": "annualRate",
      "label": "Estimated annual depreciation rate",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 3,
      "unit": "%",
      "min": 0,
      "max": 15
    },
    {
      "id": "years",
      "label": "Years held",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 5,
      "unit": null,
      "min": 1,
      "max": 30
    },
    {
      "id": "floorPct",
      "label": "Residual value floor",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 40,
      "unit": "% of original",
      "min": 0,
      "max": 100
    }
  ],
  "outputs": [
    {
      "id": "value",
      "label": "Estimated value after holding period",
      "format": "currency",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": true
    },
    {
      "id": "totalLoss",
      "label": "Total value lost",
      "format": "currency",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": false
    },
    {
      "id": "annualLossAvg",
      "label": "Average annual loss",
      "format": "currency",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": false
    },
    {
      "id": "pctRetained",
      "label": "% of original value retained",
      "format": "percent",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": false
    }
  ],
  "worked_example": {
    "inputs": [
      "Purchase price: 85000 $",
      "Estimated annual depreciation rate: 3 %",
      "Years held: 5",
      "Residual value floor: 40 % of original"
    ],
    "outputs": [
      "Estimated value after holding period: $72,992",
      "Total value lost: $12,008",
      "Average annual loss: $2,402",
      "% of original value retained: 86%"
    ]
  },
  "how_to": {
    "title": "How to use this",
    "steps": [
      "Enter purchase price ($).",
      "Enter estimated annual depreciation rate (%).",
      "Enter years held.",
      "Enter residual value floor (% of original).",
      "Read your estimated value after holding period on the right — it updates as you type.",
      "Hit Share to keep the scenario or send it to someone."
    ]
  },
  "scenarios": [
    {
      "name": "Conservative",
      "description": "Lower-end numbers — what if things land soft?",
      "values": {
        "purchasePrice": 51000,
        "annualRate": 1.7999999999999998,
        "years": 3,
        "floorPct": 25
      }
    },
    {
      "name": "Typical",
      "description": "Defaults — the most common real-world setup.",
      "values": {
        "purchasePrice": 85000,
        "annualRate": 3,
        "years": 5,
        "floorPct": 40
      }
    },
    {
      "name": "Ambitious",
      "description": "Higher-end numbers — what if things really pop?",
      "values": {
        "purchasePrice": 136000,
        "annualRate": 4.800000000000001,
        "years": 8,
        "floorPct": 65
      }
    }
  ],
  "limitations": [
    "Results are estimates before tax, fees, and inflation unless an input explicitly covers them.",
    "Rates are treated as fixed for the whole period — variable-rate products will drift from this projection.",
    "This is educational maths, not financial advice. Check anything contractual with the lender or your accountant."
  ],
  "faq": [
    {
      "q": "Why does this use a floor instead of pure exponential decay?",
      "a": "Airframes don't depreciate toward zero the way cars or electronics do because the underlying structure, with proper maintenance, has an indefinite service life and value tends to stabilize once an aircraft is old enough that buyers are paying mainly for engine/prop time remaining and avionics condition rather than airframe age itself. A floor around 30-50% of original value better reflects how older, well-maintained trainers and simple singles actually trade."
    },
    {
      "q": "Why do some aircraft appear to gain value?",
      "a": "Rising demand for trainer-category aircraft, general inflation in aircraft prices (notably after 2020), and low new-aircraft production have pushed used prices of common trainers like 172s and Cherokees up in nominal dollars even as they age, which can look like value appreciation despite the underlying airframe aging normally. This calculator models a depreciating baseline and doesn't capture market-wide price inflation."
    },
    {
      "q": "Does an engine overhaul restore lost value?",
      "a": "Yes, substantially — a fresh overhaul typically adds most of its direct cost back to resale value since buyers pay a premium for low time since major overhaul (SMOH), effectively resetting part of the depreciation clock for the engine even though the airframe continues aging normally."
    },
    {
      "q": "How does avionics affect this estimate?",
      "a": "An aircraft with an outdated panel lacking ADS-B Out or modern glass avionics can see accelerated effective depreciation as buyers increasingly discount or avoid older panels, while a recent glass panel or ADS-B-compliant upgrade adds value roughly in line with upgrade cost for several years before that upgrade itself starts to age out."
    }
  ],
  "related": [
    "https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/aircraft-ownership-cost-per-hour",
    "https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/engine-reserve-fund"
  ],
  "license": "CC-BY-4.0",
  "citation": "RevenueLab — Aircraft Depreciation Calculator (https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/aircraft-depreciation)"
}