It turns out that the F-18 aircraft for sale on eBay
was obtained at a scrap
auction, because the government officials failed
to cut up the parts and
render the aircraft unflyable. An aircraft
collector (Ken Bryant of Air
Capitol Warbirds Inc., in Wichita, Kansas)
bid 25 cents a pound, and scared
away the usual gang of scrap dealers that
were expecting to pick up the
aircraft for a less than a nickel a pound.
The aircraft went through several
owners before the current one (via
broker Landa and Associates of Arlington,
Washington). put it up for
auction on eBay. The current owner says the
aircraft can be restored to
flying condition for $9 million. A meeting with
government officials
(including representatives from the State Department,
the Department of
Defense and the FBI) left the owner in legal possession of
his aircraft.
But he had to promise not to sell it to anyone but Americans,
and to keep
the F-18 in the United States. The FBI advised that the aircraft
not be
sold at all. The eBay auction ended without a sale, mainly because no
one
could come up with the cash (at least one check bounced.) The owner is
now
trying to sell it directly (via the broker). Given the publicity he
has
gotten, that would be possible. There is still a risk that the
government
might decide to sue to get the aircraft back. Anyone who does get
it
flying again will have to spend at least 40,000 a month on
maintenance.
And that's only if the aircraft is only flown 2-3 hours a month.
