Light aircraft finance: funding a single or twin piston aircraft
Light aircraft finance spreads the cost of a new or used light aircraft, such as a two-seat trainer, a four-seat tourer or a…
Other sectors
Flying school aircraft finance: funding training aircraft and simulators
How flight schools and flying clubs finance training aircraft, helicopters, gyroplanes, microlights and simulators: hire purchase, leasing, refinancing and what lenders check.
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- From £10,000 to £20 millionLarger amounts through secured, property and asset-based finance
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- Secured or unsecuredOptions compared for your case
- Suitable businesses
- Sole traders to limited companiesPartnerships and LLPs too
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In short
What you need to know.
Flying school aircraft finance helps flight schools and flying clubs buy or replace training aircraft, helicopters, gyroplanes, microlights and simulators without tying up cash.
Lenders fund them through hire purchase, secured loans or leasing, and judge the school on its accounts, student bookings and approvals as well as the aircraft.
What a flight school can finance
- Training aircraft: two-seat trainers, four-seat tourers and light twins.
- Training helicopters, gyroplanes and microlights.
- Flight simulators and training devices.
- Engine overhauls, avionics upgrades and major maintenance.
- Hangars and premises, through commercial mortgages.
About flying school aircraft finance
Specialist knowledge. Better outcomes.
A training fleet is the biggest investment a flight school makes, and aircraft need replacing, overhauling and upgrading on a regular cycle.
Finance lets a school grow its fleet in step with student demand. This page covers how lenders look at flight schools. For finance on a single aircraft type, see our pages on light aircraft, helicopter, gyroplane and microlight finance.
- Access to 300+ lendersWhole-of-market search across our lender panel.
- Independent brokerSmart Funding Solutions is an independent broker, not a lender.
- Tailored to your caseYour case presented to lenders suited to it.
- Support from start to finishOur experts handle the process from start to finish.
Specialist lenders on our panel
Arkle Finance and Close Brothers are both on our panel, and both run specialist aviation teams. Arkle publishes aviation finance for light aircraft and helicopters, including a dedicated autogyro finance service, and Close Brothers Aviation & Marine funds light piston aircraft, turboprops, helicopters and vintage aircraft, according to their websites. Smart Funding Solutions is an independent broker and is not part of either lender. We approach the lenders whose criteria fit your aircraft and set the offers side by side.
Useful sources
Lenders will ask about your approvals, so keep the CAA guidance for approved training organisations to hand. Check each aircraft you plan to buy on G-INFO, the CAA register of UK aircraft.
Underwriting
How lenders assess a flight school
01
Accounts and bank statements, and how much flying income the fleet produces.
02
Student numbers, bookings and instructor capacity.
03
The school's approvals and its maintenance arrangements.
04
The aircraft: type, age, hours and records.
05
The deposit, and personal guarantees from the directors for newer schools.
A new school can still get finance, but expect a larger deposit and closer questions about its business plan. Our page on start-up business finance covers lending to newer businesses.
Side by side
Compare your options
How the main business finance structures work. Lenders set their own terms, so treat this as a guide to the questions to ask.
| Option | How you repay | Security | Often used for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unsecured business loan | Fixed instalments, usually monthly | No charge over assets; a personal guarantee is usually required | Growth, stock, tax bills and cash flow |
| Secured business loan | Fixed instalments, often over a longer term | A charge over property or other assets | Larger sums, property and refinancing |
| Revolving credit facility | Interest on what you draw; repay and redraw | Varies by lender and case | Recurring or uneven cash flow gaps |
| Merchant cash advance | A share of future card takings | No charge over assets | Card-taking businesses with uneven months |
| Asset finance | Regular payments over the life of the asset | The asset being financed | Equipment, vehicles and machinery |
| Invoice finance | Settled as customers pay their invoices | Your unpaid invoices | Businesses waiting on customer payment |
General information only. Every lender has its own criteria, and all finance is subject to status.
How flying school finance works
| Structure | How it works | Often suits |
|---|---|---|
| Hire purchase | Deposit, then fixed payments; the school owns the aircraft at the end | Aircraft kept for many years |
| Leasing | Paying to use the aircraft without owning it | Schools renewing their fleet regularly |
| Secured loan | A loan secured on the aircraft | Single aircraft purchases |
| Refinance | Releasing cash from aircraft the school owns | Funding growth, overhauls or new aircraft |
The broker’s view
How we help
Tell us the aircraft, the price, your deposit and who will own it. We match it against the aviation lenders on our panel, approach the ones that fit and present the case once, with the aircraft details and your accounts or income. The lender carries out its own checks and approval is always its decision. It is free to enquire, and any broker fee is disclosed separately before you proceed. To see your options now, use our instant quotes tool.
FAQs
Questions clients ask
Can a new flight school get aircraft finance?
Yes, though lenders look harder at a business without accounts. They focus on the owners' aviation experience, the business plan, student bookings, the deposit and the aircraft's resale value, and a personal guarantee is likely.
Can a flight school finance a simulator?
Yes. Simulators and training devices can be funded through hire purchase or leasing like other business equipment, often over shorter terms than aircraft.
Can we refinance our training fleet?
If the school owns aircraft outright, aviation lenders can lend against them to release cash for growth, overhauls or new aircraft. They will value each aircraft and check its records.
Keep exploring
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