The General Aviation Manufacturers Association (GAMA) has revealed that Erie 1 BOCES Harkness Career and Technical Center in Cheektowaga, New York, is the winner of the sixth annual Aviation Design Challenge, while St. Croix Lutheran Academy in St. Paul, Minnesota, is the second place winner. GAMA will send four students, one teacher, and one chaperone […]
homebuilt aircraft
35 years and counting at Rans Aircraft
One of the most celebrated names in light aviation is Rans, a company name that both hinges on and reflects its designer and company boss, Randy Schlitter. Recently this now-familiar producer celebrated 35 years since the initial flight of its first single-seat aircraft. When the company first flew its S3 Coyote I three and a […]
Teaching kids to work on airplanes
Experimental Aircraft Association Chapter 534 recently held one of its Aviation Youth Saturday workshops at the Leesburg International Airport (KLEE) in Florida, teaching kids how to build and repair real experimental general aviation aircraft. According to chapter officials, EAA Chapter 534 has committed to building up its Aviation Youth Program to work with boys and girls […]
Video: From first rivet to first flight
Smitty Smith, the force behind FunPlacesToFly.com, recently posted this video of Pat Long’s Hatz Classic experimental aircraft, built in his garage. The video shows the aircraft from the beginning of construction to first flight.
Pictures of the day: His new flying machine
Rafael Cortes sent in these photos, excitedly explaining they are of his new flying maching, a Rans S-10 Sakota. “It is actually from 1990, but never completed the Phase 1 of the Experimental Amateur Built Airworthiness,” he reports. “A friend of mine rescued it in 2013, and totally rebuilt it in 2015. My friend got […]
Transferring a dream
By JOHN WEBER On Dec. 21, 2017, several members of Experimental Aircraft Association Chapter 534 were involved with transferring a dream. Members traveled from the chapter’s hangar at Leesburg International Airport (KLEE) in Florida, to the home of an 87-year-old gentleman in The Villages. There, they picked up a project from Harry Farmer, who admitted […]
Zenith workshops returns to Sebring Expo
Zenith Aircraft Company is once again bringing its two-day, hands-on kit aircraft building workshop to the 2018 Sebring U.S. Sport Aviation Expo. The Expo, held at Sebring Regional Airport in Florida, is slated for Jan. 24-27. “The two-day hands-on workshop is an excellent way to learn all about building your own kit aircraft, and to […]
Homebuilt accidents drop to historic lows
Fatal accidents in experimental category aircraft, particularly amateur-built aircraft, continued their decline during the FAA‘s 2017 fiscal year that ended Sept. 30, falling to historic lows. For the 12-month period from Oct. 1, 2016, to Sept. 30, 2017, fatal accident totals in amateur-built aircraft were down 18% to just 27, compared with 33 during the […]
The Propeller under the Bed
By MARK JONES JR. “…After battling headwinds for five hours, Arnold Ebneter calculated that the four gallons left in his fuselage wouldn’t get him anywhere near Fredericksburg…he was so close to finally finishing his dream.” From “The Propeller under the Bed: A Personal History of Homebuilt Aircraft,” by Eileen A. Bjorkman. For almost 16 hours, 82-year-old Arnold […]