Imagine fetching the family airplane from a paint shop, and as you’re flying it on one of its first post-paint trips, part of the tail comes off. That’s precisely what happened to a Cessna Conquest after a once reputable paint shop returned the plane to service without properly reassembling it. The shop—which got decent customer reviews in previous Aviation Consumer paint shop surveys—has since gone bankrupt, but it’s a learning experience that other shops and owners can take to the bank.
While this kind of extreme drama is rare after paint work, there are other potential pitfalls. Fortunately, a high percentage of owners—85 percent—that took our recent paint shop survey report favorable experiences. Others, on the other hand, had problems that support the importance of choosing a shop that understands customer service and can accurately predict downtime and costs.