An annual and a 100-hour inspection use the same checklist. Both follow the scope in Appendix D of 14 CFR Part 43. The differences are who needs each one, when it's due, and who's allowed to sign it off.
The annual inspection
Under 14 CFR 91.409(a), you can't fly an airplane unless it has had an annual inspection within the preceding 12 calendar months. Calendar months matter. An annual signed off on March 3 is good through the end of March the following year.
Only an A&P mechanic with Inspection Authorization, called an IA, can sign off an annual. A certificated repair station can too. An A&P without an IA can do the work but can't sign the annual. Brooks holds an IA.
The 100-hour inspection
Under 91.409(b), an airplane also needs an inspection every 100 hours of time in service if it either:
- carries anyone other than crew for hire, or
- is provided by the same person who gives flight instruction for hire in it.
Any A&P mechanic can sign off a 100-hour. It doesn't need an IA.
You can go up to 10 hours past the 100-hour mark, but only to reach a place where the inspection can be done. Those extra hours count against the next 100.
One case surprises people. If you own the plane and hire an instructor to teach you in it, you don't need a 100-hour. The rule applies when the person providing the plane is also the one charging for instruction, like a flight school.
Can one replace the other?
An annual counts as a 100-hour inspection. A 100-hour does not count as an annual. That's why many flight school planes get their annual at one of their 100-hour intervals, so the two schedules stay in sync.
Which do you need?
- A private owner flying for themselves needs the annual only.
- A plane rented to pilots for their own flying needs only the annual, as long as whoever rents it out doesn't also sell instruction in it or carry paying passengers.
- A flight school plane used for paid instruction needs both.
- A plane on leaseback to a flight school that teaches in it needs both.
The rule turns on how the plane is used, not on who owns it. If you're not sure which side of the line you're on, ask before the next inspection comes due.
Brooks does both, at economical rates, and test flies every annual before the plane goes back to its owner. Curious about price? Here's what an annual costs.