Originally Posted by
India Four Two
I always thought Delaware was the jurisdiction of choice for corporations and trusts.
FYI: aircraft registration requirements fall under Federal jurisdiction and business formation/registration falls under State jurisdiction in the US. So there is no comparison. The only Federal connection to business ownership is through the IRS or through Patents/Copyrights/Trademarks.
FAR Part 47 has the basics but there are several other pieces of guidance on this matter through ACs or Orders. In addition to individual aircraft registration there are also Dealer Registrations which could show a number of aircraft under the same address.
As mentioned above, no spooky, black-bag stuff going on, rather a routine method to for non-citizens/corporations to "N" register an aircraft. In most cases, the entity listed in the aircraft registration listing is the legal agent for the actual owner.
And yes, some government entities use the same method. Anybody remember Air America or Southern Air Transport?