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N number on a de-registered aircraft??

MIKE JG

MIKE JG

Well Known Member
There's a N number that I would like to reserve but it's currently on an airplane whose registration has lapsed and this is how the FAA site shows the status:

Type Reservation Hold
Mode S Code xxxxxxxxxx
Reserved Date 04/06/2018
Renewal Date None
Purge Date 04/06/2023
Pending Number Change None
Date Change Authorized None
Reserving Party Name CANCELLED/NOT ASSIGNED
Street None
City None
State
Zip Code None
County
Click to expand...

So the FAA site shows on one hand that this N number was reserved last year but a few lines later says it was cancelled and not assigned.

Before I try my luck with OKC (are they even open right now?) does anyone here know how this works??

Since your registration expires every three years now, I'm assuming there is some sort of grace period to allow you to re-register your aircraft. But at some point wouldn't that N number go back into the available pool?? Or is the purge date listed above when that number becomes available again??
 
registration

Per the FAA: If the aircraft registration has not been renewed before the file-by date, the FAA will send a second notice advising the owner of the pending expiration and their options. A third notice will be sent when an aircraft's registration has expired. It will inform the owner that the registration and airworthiness certificates no longer support operation of the aircraft and that the assigned N-number will be cancelled if the aircraft is not registered within 60 days of the date of the letter.

I don't recall how long it takes before the registratuion number becomes available. As I recall, if a plane is wrecked, it takes 7 years for that number to be eligible for use on a "new" aircraft.
 
It was 5 years, not 7. Found it here:
After the registration expiration date the Registry will send a notice to the owner to tell them when the N-number assignment is scheduled for cancellation. If the owner wishes to keep the N-number they must, before the cancelation takes place, send a request to the Registry asking that the aircraft's registration be cancelled and the N-number be reserved in the owner's name, accompanied by the $10.00 N-number reservation fee. If the N-number is canceled without being reserved, it will not be available for re-assignment or reservation for the next five years.
 
Google is amazing, what I couldn't find paging through multiple FAA web pages, a Google search found in about .25 seconds.

After the registration expiration date the Registry will send a notice to the owner to tell them when the N-number assignment is scheduled for cancellation. If the owner wishes to keep the N-number they must, before the cancelation takes place, send a request to the Registry asking that the aircraft's registration be cancelled and the N-number be reserved in the owner's name, accompanied by the $10.00 N-number reservation fee. If the N-number is canceled without being reserved, it will not be available for re-assignment or reservation for the next five years.
Click to expand...

There's my answer, right in front of me.
 
Buy it?

You might possibly contact the prior owner and have him sell/transfer the number to you.

I know I have gotten letters in the mail from corporate jet companies that wanted to buy the N3EV number on my Aeronca. So there must be a way to do it, although I have never looked into it.

The current owner might turn out to be helpful and work with you to transfer the number.

Steve
 
Yes, the number may be reassigned to you by having the previous owner release it to you. I've done this a few times in the past and about to do it again.
 
Last edited:
Yes it appears that it was.

Thanks for the suggestions. I?ve done the N number swap before so that might be an option.
 
For Mel

Were your number transfers from previous owners on "active" numbers or were they in the "purge" period?


HFS
 
N-number in Purge Period

My experience with the FAA regarding recovering an N-number, that for whatever reason, that was in the 5-year "purge" classification, is that there is no FAA reg that covers this transition back to active status. Typically, when the waiting period is over, and the number is returned to the "available" pool, a "sniper" is ready and waiting to scoop it up for resale later. The more unique the number is, the more attractive it is to the sniping community.

Ask me how I know - I worked on such a situation for a year and half without much to show for my efforts except frustration.

HFS
 
HFS said:
My experience with the FAA regarding recovering an N-number, that for whatever reason, that was in the 5-year "purge" classification, is that there is no FAA reg that covers this transition back to active status. Typically, when the waiting period is over, and the number is returned to the "available" pool, a "sniper" is ready and waiting to scoop it up for resale later. The more unique the number is, the more attractive it is to the sniping community.

Ask me how I know - I worked on such a situation for a year and half without much to show for my efforts except frustration.

HFS
Click to expand...

Yes, even sitting at the keyboard at one minute after midnight on the purge end day (even allowing for time zones) the sniper wins..:(
 
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