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Is there any secondary or reuse market for the first class and business class seats ( or pods) from the aircraft that fly international flights. What will happen to those first class and business class cabin elements? I am specifically looking for information on pricing, brokerage contact information, and other relevant information regarding the resale/reuse process. Please look at Singapore Airlines, Qatar Airways, Etihad Airways, Japan Airlines, EVA Air, ANA All Nippon Airways, Finnair.
Hello! Thank you for question regarding the aviation seat reuse market. The short answer is that the market is not terribly large (though it seems to be growing), and not well-organized or aggregated. One's best options would appear to be directly contacting resellers and salvagers to get quotes or place bids, registering with resellers for sale notifications, and creating eBay alerts to watch for sales there. Below you'll find a deep dive of my findings, as well as a list of some resellers and salvagers.
SUPPLY AND DEMAND
Airplanes are generally not broken down by airlines, but instead entire planes are dealt with. In some cases, the plane will be stored at an 'airplane graveyard', and used as a source of parts by the airline. When not kept by the airline, they are bought by private firms, and broken down. This is often done on-demand, and so the free-floating market for parts and components is not large.
Seats are considered one of the more desirable components, and the going rate for commercial jet seats appears to be about $300 in general, or $350 for business class, but first-class seats can go for first-class prices, with some ANA seats selling for over $5400 in 2014, and only being sold domestically. To get quotes, especially for volume purchases, direct contact of resellers would generally be required.
Overall, the supply is limited and so the relative demand is high, but with numerous planes scheduled to be retired in the near future, there are several potentially fruitful tactics which are particularly appropriate if one has model or branding requirements in mind. The first would be to call around to active salvagers and find one willing to source and salvage the desired parts. Another would be to pick a reseller, outline the requirements for model and condition, and negotiate a bid for when the seats become available, possibly with a downpayment. The last tactic is to set up alerts for when seats come on the market, by setting up eBay alerts and registering with AviationGate and Controller for notifications/want-to-buy postings, etc.
LIST OF RESELLERS AND SALVAGERS
I've tried to stick to places that have at least some indication of components from larger planes being listed or salvaged. I've included private jet components, in case these are applicable.
SkyArt - 90 (0) 216 415 5588 - Turkish firm that lists a large number of first-class seats. Use their web form or call for quotes.
Atlanta Air Exchange - 800.237.8831 - Lists Airbus, Boeing, Lear, Gulfstream, and seems able to do custom sourcing and salvaging. Search system is awful, just call.
PreferredAirParts - 800.433.0814 - They, "pick up miscellaneous seats here and there." Currently have seats from prop planes and private jets. No prices listed.
Aviationgate - helpdesk@aviationgate.com - A buyer/seller listing site based in Germany. Many listings are in Europe, with no way to filter by location. Quote request system is online.
Controller - 800.334.7445 - Another listing site. Descriptions are generally terse, and the sellers all want you to call/message to negotiate a price. Also have Europe and Australia/Pacific Rim contact numbers, which might help for picking up branded seats.
Dodson International - 785.878.8000 - Have stuff listed under seats, but their inventory descriptions are opaque, and have no prices. Best to call.
Texas Air Salvage - 903.255.7878 - Have a lot of seats, but currently only for small prop planes. Prices for these range from $400 to $1200.
CONCLUSION
To wrap up, the market for airplane interior components such as seats is fragmented and often sourced on-demand from airplane graveyards. The best options would appear to be arranging for custom salvage, negotiating an order with a reseller, or setting watches and orders on buy/sell sites. I hope these resources help. Thank you for asking Wonder, and please let us know if you have further questions!