Sell Aircraft Parts: AR, BER and Surplus Inventory
Airplane Parts Direct buys used serviceable material, as-removed rotables and BER cores from teardown operations, part-out programs, MROs carrying surplus, and lessors working through end-of-life assets. Send a list, get an offer within 48 hours.
Most of the inventory we purchase comes from operations that generate parts as a by-product of something else: an airframe coming apart, a fleet transition, a shop clear-out, a lease return nobody wants to store another quarter.
We are a brokerage, not a stocking distributor, so we buy against demand rather than to fill a warehouse. That shapes what we are useful for — we move quickly on material with an identified buyer, and we will tell you plainly when a lot is outside what we can place.
Teardown and disassembly facilities parting out narrowbody, widebody, regional and rotorcraft airframes
Part-out programs running against a specific tail or engine position
MROs and repair stations holding surplus, overstock or removed-and-replaced rotables
Lessors and asset managers disposing of end-of-life or off-lease material
Operators consolidating stores after a fleet exit
Brokers and traders clearing aged inventory
What we buy
Rotables and repairable line-replaceable units are where we place the most volume. Condition matters less than paperwork and part number demand — a serviceable unit with no trace is often worth less to us than an as-removed unit with a clean removal tag and a known history.
Wheels, brakes and brake assemblies
Landing gear components, actuators and steering assemblies
Avionics: displays, control units, radios, navigation and surveillance LRUs
Hydraulic and pneumatic components, ducting and bleed hardware
Flight control surfaces, PCUs and actuation hardware
Cabin and interior rotables, galley inserts and windows
BER cores with repair potential or exchange value
What we cannot buy
Saying this up front saves both of us a week. Airplane Parts Direct is not registered with the Directorate of Defense Trade Controls, so we cannot purchase, broker or take possession of ITAR-controlled defense articles. If a line on your list is USML-controlled, we have to pass on it regardless of condition or price.
We also decline material we cannot identify. A part number with no nameplate, no tag and no paperwork is scrap value at best, and we would rather say so than make an offer we will need to retract after inspection.
ITAR / USML-controlled defense articles and technical data
Parts with no identifiable part number or nameplate
Known unapproved parts, or material with a suspect paperwork chain
Life-limited parts whose back-to-birth trace cannot be reconstructed, where the platform requires it
How offers are built
Three things move the number: what the part number is doing in the market right now, what condition and paperwork you can release it with, and how much of the lot we can place rather than sit on.
Trace is usually the single largest swing. The same as-removed unit can differ by a wide margin depending on whether it ships with a removal tag and traceable history or with nothing at all. Back-to-birth documentation on life-limited hardware moves it further again.
We price the lot the way we would sell it, minus the work in between. Where a line is genuinely dead — obsolete, superseded, no demand — we say so instead of averaging it into the offer and quietly discounting the rest.
What to send with your list
A spreadsheet is fine. We do not need a formal quotation package to start, and we would rather see a rough list quickly than a perfect one in three weeks.
Part number and quantity per line
Condition — NE, NS, OH, SV, AR or BER
What paperwork exists: 8130-3, EASA Form 1, removal tag, teardown report, or none
Serial numbers where they exist, particularly on life-limited hardware
Aircraft or engine the material came off, if known
Photos of the tags and nameplates for anything high-value
Where the material is physically located, and whether it is packed
How the process runs
Send the list. We screen it against current demand and come back within 48 hours with an offer, questions, or an honest pass. Nothing is exclusive and nothing obliges you to sell.
On acceptance we issue a purchase order, arrange collection against your preferred Incoterms, and settle on agreed terms. For material we can place but do not want to hold, we will propose consignment instead of an outright purchase and tell you which we think serves you better.
Outright purchase or consignment
Outright is simpler and faster: we take title, you are done, and the placement risk moves to us. That is usually the right answer for aged stock, mixed lots and anything you are paying to store.
Consignment usually returns more on individually valuable rotables with real demand, because you are not paying us to absorb the risk of holding them. It takes longer and the money arrives as units sell.
We will tell you which fits your lot. If your inventory is worth more consigned than sold to us, saying so is worth more to us than the margin on a bad purchase.
Common questions
Do you buy AR parts with no paperwork?
Often, yes — as-removed material with no trace still has a market, particularly on part numbers with repair demand. It prices lower than tagged material and we will be explicit about the difference rather than quietly discounting the whole lot. What we cannot buy is material we cannot identify at all: no part number, no nameplate, no tag.
Is there a minimum lot size?
No. We regularly buy lots well under $50,000 and will look at a single high-value rotable. Larger teardown inventories are welcome, and we can work line by line rather than requiring an all-or-nothing package.
How fast will I get an offer?
Within 48 hours of receiving a usable list. Large mixed inventories may come back in stages — we would rather send you firm numbers on the lines we can place immediately than hold the entire list while we work the tail.
Do you buy BER cores?
Yes, where there is repair or exchange value in the core. BER designation on its own does not kill a unit's worth — what matters is whether a shop can economically return it to service or whether it carries exchange value against a rotable pool.
Can you buy military or defense-related parts?
Not currently. Airplane Parts Direct is not registered with the Directorate of Defense Trade Controls, so ITAR-controlled defense articles are outside what we can purchase or broker, regardless of condition. Dual-use commercial material is fine; USML-controlled hardware is not.
Will you buy an entire teardown inventory?
We will look at any list. In practice we buy the portion we can place and are straightforward about the remainder — a whole-inventory number that quietly writes down the slow-moving lines is worse for you than a clear split between what we want and what we do not.
Do you take consignment instead of buying?
Yes. Consignment usually returns more on individually valuable rotables with genuine demand, while outright purchase is better for aged, mixed or storage-costing stock. We will recommend whichever fits your inventory rather than defaulting to the one that suits us.
Where do you buy from?
Worldwide. We handle export documentation and coordinate collection against your preferred Incoterms. Material outside the US is routine; we will confirm any destination-country or export-control constraints before committing to a purchase.
Send us the list
Part numbers, quantities, condition and whatever paperwork exists. A rough spreadsheet is enough to start — we come back within 48 hours with an offer, questions, or a straight pass.