Top Aircraft Registry Change and Re-Registration Consultancies

An aircraft that changes owner, lessee or operator often has to change register as well. That means deregistration in the old state, an export Certificate of Airworthiness, a records review and physical survey, a new registration, an import Certificate of Airworthiness and, for many aircraft, updated filings on the International Registry. Each step has its own authority and its own document checklist, and a slip at any point keeps the aircraft on the ground while lease rent or ACMI revenue is lost.

This list covers firms that manage that process. It is not a paid ranking.

How we chose these firms

Each company was checked on its own website this session. We kept firms that publish a specific registration, deregistration, import and export or registry transition service, and state where they work from or which registers they cover. Some are technical consultancies, some are CAMOs and one is a title and escrow company, because a registry change touches all three. For background, see our explainers on the International Registry, the Cape Town Convention and the Certificate of Airworthiness.

Top aircraft registry change and re-registration consultancies

1. Avtrac

Avtrac was founded in 1992 by Valentine Barry and works from Crawley in the UK. It says it has worked on more than 2,000 commercial aircraft projects, including transitions, deliveries and redeliveries. Its jurisdictional service obtains the export Certificate of Airworthiness and the import recommendation for the new state of registry, and it can run the whole job from pre-purchase inspection to registration and ferry.

2. Nordic Aviation CAMO and Consulting

Nordic Aviation CAMO and Consulting is an EASA Part-CAMO with consultants in the Oslo region, the Helsinki area and Toulouse. Its consulting team runs aircraft import and export projects, supports registration and deregistration, manages entry into service and phase-out, and represents clients at redelivery to lessors. Fit: European operators and lessors moving aircraft between EASA member states or into the EASA system.

3. CAC Global Solutions

CAC Global Solutions works with owners, operators and civil aviation authorities across several jurisdictions, including offshore registries. Its transition service covers choosing the right registry, technical records review for aircraft acceptance and Certificate of Airworthiness issue, work packages for registration and deregistration, import and export management and liaison with the authority.

4. Oscar Echo Business Jet Services

Oscar Echo is an Austrian business jet services company led by founder and CEO Bernhard Schafgassner. Its registration service covers registration and deregistration with national authorities, Certificate of Airworthiness process management, private operations and EFB manual approvals, minimum equipment lists, customs coordination and compliance with EASA and FAA rules during lease or ownership transfers.

5. Insight Aviation Group

Insight Aviation Group is based at Bournemouth Airport in the UK. It is an approved Technical Coordinator for the Guernsey 2-REG register, runs change of registry projects, and handles approved maintenance programmes, records and pre-buy inspections. It has particular experience with King Air and TBM turboprops. Fit: owners of turboprops and light jets moving onto the Guernsey register.

6. Avalon Aero Technical Services (AATS)

AATS is an independent UK CAMO for fixed and rotary wing aircraft across commercial, private, military and business aviation. Alongside continuing airworthiness management, airworthiness review certificates and records management, it offers aircraft acquisition and delivery support and migration of maintenance records into its systems, which is often the slowest part of moving an aircraft to a new register.

7. Insured Aircraft Title Service (IATS)

Insured Aircraft Title Service has worked in aviation title and escrow since 1963. Its services include FAA document preparation and filing, title searches, title and lien clearing, International Registry filings, special registration numbers and escrow. Fit: any registry change involving an N-registered aircraft, where FAA deregistration and lien clearance must be complete before the export goes ahead.

8. Baines Simmons

Baines Simmons works on the registry side rather than for owners. The UK safety consultancy designs, builds and operates aircraft registries for governments, supplying surveyors for Certificate of Airworthiness surveys for issue, renewal and export, processing applications and recommending approval of maintenance programmes and MELs. Knowing how the receiving register runs its surveys helps an owner plan the timeline.

The usual sequence of a registry change

1. Choose the destination register and confirm owner and operator eligibility.
2. Run a full records review against the destination authority's requirements, including airworthiness directives, modifications and the maintenance programme.
3. Clear liens and agree discharges of any International Registry interests that will not stay in place.
4. Request deregistration from the current authority and obtain the export Certificate of Airworthiness.
5. Complete the physical survey and any work package required by the new authority.
6. Register the aircraft, apply the new marks and obtain the new Certificate of Airworthiness, noise certificate and radio licence.
7. Update insurance, operating approvals and the lease or management agreement with the new registration.

Ferry flights complicate the order. An aircraft that changes register in the middle of a delivery may need permits filed under one set of marks and an arrival under another, so many advisers complete the ferry first and change marks afterwards. Agree that sequence with the lessor, the lessee and both authorities before the aircraft moves.

How to use this list

Start with the destination register, not the aircraft. Confirm its eligibility rules for owners and operators, the documents it wants, whether it accepts the current maintenance programme and modifications, and how long its surveys are taking. Then work backwards: deregistration, lien clearance, export Certificate of Airworthiness and the ferry flight have to line up so the aircraft is never without valid papers.

Registry changes are usually triggered by a lease, sale or new operator. If you are looking for the aircraft or the operator that comes before the paperwork, you can post a listing or a request on the ACMIWORLD marketplace (Access, Listing and Request are paid subscriptions).

Costs are rarely just the consultant's fee. Budget for authority charges at both ends, surveyor travel, any work package raised by the survey, records translation if the previous register used another language, and the lease rent or ACMI revenue lost while the aircraft is on the ground. A realistic downtime estimate is usually worth more than a lower fee.

FAQ

How long does an aircraft registry change take?

It depends on the two authorities and the state of the records. A clean business jet with complete records can move in weeks. An airliner coming off lease with records gaps can take months.

What is an export Certificate of Airworthiness?

A statement from the exporting authority that the aircraft conforms to its type design and is in condition for safe operation at the time of export. The importing authority uses it as the basis for its own Certificate of Airworthiness.

Does the International Registry change when the national register changes?

Not automatically. International interests registered under the Cape Town Convention sit on the International Registry, which is separate from national registers, so filings and discharges need to be checked as part of the move.

Do I need a consultant for a registry change?

Not always, but most owners and lessors use one because each authority has its own forms, survey process and timing. A consultant who knows both registers reduces the risk of a grounded aircraft between them.