An auction to sell FAH-001 (msn 14501041), a presidential Legacy 600 owned and operated by the Honduran Air Force/Fuerza Aérea Hondureña (Tegucigalpa) for the exclusive use of the president, has been delayed as the current government appraises the value of the aircraft in an investigation into its 2014 acquisition, airworthiness, and ownership documentation, the Honduran newspaper El Heraldo reports.
Honduras’ directorate of state assets (Dirección Nacional de Bienes del Estado - DNBE) assured El Heraldo that the government, under president Xiomara Castro, intends to fulfil Castro's presidential campaign and sell the bizjet in a public auction.
“Said aircraft was acquired in a period of administrative obscurity, in which the necessary legal mechanisms for the correct accreditation of the aforementioned commercial transaction were not established,” said the DNBE, adding that prior to the sale of the Legacy 600 it is imperative to clarify the financing, ownership status, and condition of the aircraft.
The Legacy 600 was acquired in October 2014 during the presidential term of then-president Juan Orlando Hernández (who was convicted of drug trafficking and weapons conspiracy in the United States in March 2024). The acquisition of the presidential jet (originally appraised at USD14 million), alongside four UH-1H Bell Helicopters donated by the government of Taiwan, was controversial and sparked the recent investigation.
The 16.6-year-old aircraft is currently inactive. The ch-aviation fleets module shows it has a capacity for 13 passengers. Prior to operating for the Honduran Air Force, it flew for Empire Aviation (MJE, Dubai International) between April 2008 and December 2012.
