Podcast: The Truth About the Market Host: Jason Zilberbrand, President of VREF Episode Overview Artificial intelligence is coming for aviation — fast… But is the industry actually ready for it? In Episode 18 of The Truth About the Market, Jason tackles one of the most requested topics of the year and strips away the hype to examine the real constraints, risks, and opportunities AI presents across aviation. This is not a futurist fantasy episode. It’s a [...]

Podcast: The Truth About the Market Host: Jason Zilberbrand, President of VREF Episode Overview In this end-of-year Christmas special, Jason steps back from valuations, depreciation curves, and transactional warfare to reflect on the year that aviation finally remembered gravity. Delivered through a poetic cold-open that rewrites ’Twas the Night Before Christmas for the aircraft industry, this episode blends humor, honesty, and hard-earned perspective as Jason unpacks the three forces that quietly shaped 2025: the privacy upheaval, [...]

Podcast: The Truth About the Market Host: Jason Zilberbrand, President & CTO, VREF Episode Overview In this eye-opening episode, Jason reveals one of the least discussed — yet most influential — forces in every aircraft transaction: the broker. Not the airplane. Not the market. Not the valuation model. The broker. Using a fictional—but extremely realistic—2012 Citation CJ3, Jason demonstrates how six different broker archetypes can turn the same airplane into six completely different stories. The asset [...]

Podcast: The Truth About the Market Host: Jason Zilberbrand, President & CTO, VREF Episode Overview In this Thanksgiving special, Jason steps away from depreciation curves, absorption rates, and market chaos to talk about something aviation doesn’t celebrate nearly enough: gratitude. But don’t worry — this isn’t some soft, sentimental detour. This is an episode about the real aviation world we all live in: the chaos, the beauty, the people who keep airplanes flying, the market that refuses to [...]

Podcast: The Truth About the Market Host: Jason Zilberbrand, President & CTO, VREF Episode Overview In this episode, Jason pulls back the curtain on one of the most common (and expensive) patterns in aviation: the first airplane someone wants to buy is almost always more airplane than they actually need. From turbocharged SR22s to pressurized pistons with FIKI, Jason unpacks how identity, ego, and fantasy missions push first-time buyers into aircraft that outpace their experience, budget, and real-world [...]

Podcast: The Truth About the Market Host: Jason Zilberbrand, President & CTO, VREF Length: ~35 minutes Theme: Why aircraft aren’t selling — and what fair market, orderly liquidation, and forced liquidation values really mean when the market slows down Episode Overview In this episode, Jason Zilberbrand takes a hard look at what happens when aircraft stop moving — not just in the air, but in the resale market. From piston singles and turboprops to light jets, [...]

Podcast: The Truth About the Market Host: Jason Zilberbrand, President & CTO, VREF Length: ~45 minutes Theme: The global engine crisis—what caused it, how it’s reshaping aircraft values, and what every operator needs to do next Episode Overview In this episode, Jason Zilberbrand breaks down one of the biggest challenges facing aviation today: the engine shortage. From skyrocketing overhaul lead times to the myth of “guaranteed coverage,” he exposes how years of labor attrition, supply chain [...]

Host: Jason Zilberbrand, President of VREF Aircraft Value Reference & Appraisal Services Summary In one of the most revealing episodes yet, Jason pulls back the curtain on three of the aviation industry’s most misunderstood—and often misused—practices: off-market aircraft, back-to-back transactions, and the broker’s role in 2025. He explains why these deals tempt buyers and sellers alike with promises of speed, exclusivity, and discretion—and why, more often than not, they lead straight into confusion, inflated prices, and [...]

 Host: Jason Zilberbrand, President of VREF Aircraft Value Reference & Appraisal Services Overview In this episode of The Truth About the Market, Jason turns the spotlight on the aviation community itself. Drawing from the latest VREF Market Sentiment Survey, which gathered responses from over 1,000 buyers, sellers, brokers, lenders, and operators, he breaks down what people across the industry are seeing, feeling, and planning for as 2025 comes to a close. From shifting inventory trends and [...]

Host: Jason Zilberbrand, President of VREF Aircraft Value Reference & Appraisal Services Introduction A single dent can erase seven figures from a jet’s value. In this episode, Jason unpacks one of aviation’s most misunderstood—and expensive—topics: damage. Drawing on decades of appraising, federal litigation experience, and a personal war story (a Lear 45 tail strike in a hangar), he explains why damage isn’t a checkbox or a one-size deduction. It’s a nuanced blend of market psychology, documentation, [...]