Every day in Thomas Remo’s life looks a little different, but some of his key focuses include entrepreneurship, flying a Gulfstream as a professional pilot, and owning an aircraft of his own – a Cessna Citation 501SP.
Remo (who goes by “Gear Down” on Instagram and YouTube) has been a pilot for 13 years and, for a long time, didn’t think pursuing aviation was a feasible goal. He had taken his first flight lesson at 25 years old, but sidelined that quest in order to focus on the demands of the various businesses he was running at the time. But, as he explained, retiring at 29 allowed him the flexibility to pursue aviation full-time.
“I retired and figured that it was time to start learning how to fly and went down to a little flight school here in Fullerton, California, where I knocked out my private [certificate] in six weeks. What I realized at the end of that training was that renting planes was not in the cards for me, after looking at the costs. So, I ran out to buy my first airplane, a Piper Cherokee 140 off eBay, which I did my instrument training in.”
The aircraft would serve Remo well during his flight training, but he got the itch to fly further and faster, like many pilots do.
“I decided that the Cherokee was a little too slow and came upon a deal for a Piper PA-30, a Twin Comanche. That thing cruised at 170 knots and with the tip tanks and had a 1,000-plus-mile range. It was an awesome plane, and my flying really took off after buying it. I kept the Cherokee for local flying, putting around, and the Twin Comanche for longer trips, often to Northern California, where my business at the time was,” Remo said.
“I owned a couple of auto shops in my early years and thought that it’s kind of crazy that I have this very simple 1930s-designed tractor engine flying me around, but I’m not allowed to do anything on it besides change the oil and spark plugs. Since I had a lot of time, I wound up going to the local community college here to get my A&P certificate. As I was doing that, I was offered a unique opportunity to open a flight school that would be linked with the college.”
That Part 141 operation grew to six aircraft, ultimately, before Remo sold it. What would be next in his aviation journey? Finding a new airplane to fly was the priority.
“I found myself with no aircraft because I sold the school complete with everything, and that’s when I bought my first Cirrus. I flew it for a few years, and prices started going crazy, right before COVID, and I realized that I could sell it for nearly double what I paid for it. Then, I would end up buying my Citation, which I still own to this day.”
Remo experienced remarkably good timing in the sale of his SR22 and the purchase of the new-to-him Citation.
“It was a very interesting deal, because remember, at the beginning of COVID, piston prices had really shot up. But legacy Citations had not yet spiked in value, even though the market was on fire. I was able to sell the Cirrus, buy the Citation, and put money in my pocket, which is insane.”
The aircraft he purchased was not the jet he was initially intending, as the serial he was eying had been destroyed in a tornado right before he was set to travel to see it for a pre-purchase inspection. As luck would have it, the 501SP he wound up buying fit his wish list better.
“I go and look at the plane, and it’s in great condition. The paint and interior were both less than ten years old. One of the engines was near hot section, and the other was essentially new, and there was a nice, upgraded panel with a full EFIS. The plane I was looking at before had steam gauges, and there would need to be a lot of work on the interior, so I’m like – ‘man, this is the ticket!”
One of the few immediate maintenance items was an air cycle machine, so Remo hired a friend (who was typed in the airframe), and they flew the aircraft from Tennessee to its new home in Southern California at VFR altitudes. The failed component was quickly replaced, a new paint job was completed, as well as a full interior refurbishment.
“I did everything needed to make it absolutely mint, maintenance-wise and cosmetically. We did everything from hardware to soft goods and retrofitted the whole thing. Most people, when they look at it, don’t know that it’s a legacy Citation; they think it’s a new airplane. It’s my pride and joy,” Remo explained.
“Coming from a piston, the really cool thing about the plane is it’s air-conditioned and an all-weather machine. For the most part, I can get up above most weather. My typical mission is Southern California to see family in Midland, Texas, which I can make non-stop. I can hit Dallas non-stop if the winds are good, but coming back, I have to do a fuel stop. Then I also fly a lot between SoCal, Phoenix, and Las Vegas, where I do a lot of business,” he said.
Remo admits that he doesn’t fly this jet much, typically less than 75 hours per year. He has a few other aircraft accessible to him that he chooses for shorter trips, especially since the Jet A bill can climb quickly. Plus, he is routinely on the road flying Gulfstreams for his clients in the music and entertainment industry.
“This is an awesome plane, but I’m not going to lie to you, it’s a legacy Citation, so it burns a lot of fuel. But for me, it’s worth it for the time savings it provides. Plus, I can fly with my wife and kid, and everybody’s happy,” he said.
“It’s a very capable plane, especially the way that I fly with a maximum of four people on board, who don’t usually have more than a duffel bag each. We can get to the high 30s easily, and 410 is no problem on a light and cool day. But she’s not fast, she is a ‘Slowtation’ after all – but we are usually flying around 340 [ktas], which is not bad. I typically plan for around 160 gallons per hour, which includes first, second, and third segment [of the climb] as well as cruise. But I’m not the pilot to pull it back to conserve fuel and enjoy the view. I bought a jet to go fast.”
There is one thing that Remo has that many other pilots don’t, which affords him additional flexibility and savings in jet ownership.
“One of the big benefits that I have in owning the citation, which I don’t think I’d be able to own otherwise, is the fact that I am an A&P. If I weren’t a mechanic, there is no way I could afford the thing. But you know, that’s just due to labor costs on inspections. It is a Part 25 airplane, and there’s always something that has to be inspected, opened up, or looked at. Me being a mechanic allows me to be able to do that and not have to pay some shop, you know, 200 bucks an hour.”
Legacy Citations are overlooked and provide tremendous value, Remo contends. It should be under consideration for anyone looking to purchase a jet while minimizing acquisition costs.
“The Citation 501SP is a single-pilot jet that you can get into at this time for under a million dollars, which is awesome. I think the next closest jet you’re going to get into is probably a used Phenom 100, or something like that. There is a considerable delta between legacy Citations and any other light jet, price-wise. [There is] good parts availability and lots of shops that are familiar with the airframe. There are no specialized computers needed to repair or troubleshoot systems, and there is cross compatibility of parts with other airframes, and insurance costs are far lower.”
