What Happens to Airplanes When Nobody Wants Them Anymore?

Ever wonder why there's a multi-million-dollar market for 25-year-old airplanes that can't afford their next inspection? The engines alone can be worth more than the entire hull — but only if you have the paperwork. Those desert boneyards aren't graveyards; they're component warehouses feeding a global supply chain where a missing signature can condemn $50,000 of pristine titanium to scrap. The plane you flew on last week is probably wearing parts from three different aircraft you'll never see, and the only thing that makes them legal to fly is a paper trail more critical than the metal itself.