Buying guide
ICON A5 for sale: what to check before you buy
Published November 11, 2026.
The ICON A5 is a two-seat amphibian with folding wings, a Rotax engine and an airframe parachute. It is also an aircraft whose manufacturer went through bankruptcy and changed owners in 2024. Below is what the public record says about the certification and about the company, what today's listings show, and what to check before an offer.
Two approvals for the same aircraft
The A5 was first sold in the United States as a special light-sport aircraft. In December 2023 ICON announced that the FAA had granted the A5 a type certificate in the primary category.2 The FAA documents for that certificate call the aircraft the Model A5-B and name its engine as the Rotax 912 iSc2 Sport, covered by engine data sheet E00051EN.1
The difference matters to a buyer. According to the report on the certification, the type-certified version requires a private pilot certificate and a seaplane rating, and the certificate was sought to open markets that do not recognize the American light-sport category.2 Before anything else, ask which of the two approvals the aircraft on offer flies under.
The manufacturer since 2024
| Date | What happened |
|---|---|
| 2016 | First A5 delivered.3 |
| December 2023 | FAA type certificate in the primary category announced.2 |
| April 2024 | ICON Aircraft files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.3 |
| June 18, 2024 | The court approves the sale of all assets to SG Investment America for US$15.79 million. By then 210 aircraft had been delivered.3 |
| July 2026 | ICON announces that A5 production will resume in 2027, with a new system to warn of the wrong landing gear position.4 |
The buyer, SG Investment America, belongs to the German company Dürkopp Adler, which is owned by ShangGong Group of Shanghai.3 The 2026 announcement gave no production rate or delivery dates.4 For someone buying a used A5 today, the practical question is support: parts, service bulletins and who answers for the aircraft built before the sale.
What today's listings show
On November 11, 2026, the PlaneFox aggregator, which collects listings from European and American portals and brokers, showed 14 ICON A5s for sale.5
| PlaneFox, 11/11/2026 | ICON A5 |
|---|---|
| Listings | 14 |
| In the United States / in Europe | 11 / 3 |
| Model years | 2016 to 2025 |
| Total hours, where published (11 listings) | 15 to 750, median 190 |
| Asking price (4 listings) | US$319,000 to 500,000* |
* Three other listings, one of them a 2024 aircraft, show exactly US$100,000, and one European listing shows €50. Prices that far from the others need an explanation before any conversation: they can be a placeholder, a share of the aircraft or a typo. Two of the three aircraft in Europe carry American registrations. Asking price is not selling price.
What to check on any A5
- Which approval and which registration. Ask for the airworthiness certificate and confirm whether the aircraft is a light-sport A5 or a type-certified one.2 Then confirm with the aviation authority of your country that it can be registered and flown there, and with which licence. The routine for checking serial, registration and owner is in this post, and American registrations can be checked in the FAA registry.6
- Manufacturer support. Ask the seller, and ICON itself, how parts and technical support work today for an aircraft of that serial, given the change of ownership in 2024 and the production restart announced for 2027.34
- Water history. This part is our reading. An amphibian that has operated in salt water needs a corrosion inspection of the hull, the landing gear and the fittings. Ask where the aircraft operated and how it was rinsed and stored.
- Calendar items on a low-hour aircraft. This is also our reading. Six of the eleven A5s that publish their hours have fewer than 200, so parts wear out by age before they wear out by use: the airframe parachute has repack and rocket replacement dates, and the Rotax engine has rubber parts replaced by calendar time. Ask for the dates, not only the hours.
- Landing gear and hull. Landing on water with the gear down, or on a runway with it up, is the classic amphibian accident, and it is the error the system announced in 2026 is meant to prevent.4 Ask about any water or gear incident and have the hull inspected.
- Folding wings and trailer. Check the wing folding mechanism and its locking, and whether the trailer is part of the sale.
The ICON A5 we have for sale
- ICON A5: 60.1 hours, Rotax 912 iS Sport engine, Garmin aera 796 GPS, Trig radio and transponder with ADS-B Out, airframe parachute. Open to offers.
The year, serial number, registration and calendar dates are confirmed with the seller on request.
Sources
- FAA, airworthiness criteria for the ICON Aircraft Model A5-B (correction), Federal Register 88 FR 87655, Dec. 19, 2023: govinfo.gov
- Flying, "ICON A5 Receives FAA Primary Category Type Certification", Dec. 27, 2023: flyingmag.com
- AOPA, "Court approves Icon Aircraft sale", June 20, 2024: aopa.org
- AVweb, "ICON Aircraft To Resume A5 Production In 2027 With New Safety Technology", July 23, 2026: avweb.com
- PlaneFox, ICON A5 listings, accessed Nov. 11, 2026: planefox.com
- FAA, aircraft registry inquiry: registry.faa.gov