The Airplane Factory (TAF) is now collaborating with Synergy Air of Eugene, Oregon, on the Sling 4 Two Week Turbo Build Program. The program involves a builder spending several weeks at Synergy Air’s Oregon location and building a Sling 4 Turbo from quickbuild kit with the training and assistance of Synergy Air’s team. The airplane will then […]
homebuilt aircraft
EAA unveils Founder’s Innovation Prize to spur new safety technology for homebuilts
EAA AVIATION CENTER, OSHKOSH, Wisconsin — At this week’s AirVenture, officials with the Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA) introduced a new Founder’s Innovation Prize competition designed to encourage innovation to enhance safety in amateur-built aircraft. It will use the best ideas from EAA members and chapters, with cash prizes for the best emerging technology.The competition was announced […]
Pietenpol Aircraft Co. revived
The grandson of Bernard Pietenpol, who is known as the Father of the Homebuilt Aircraft, has joined with Aircraft Spruce to offer Pietenpol Air Camper kits. The revived Pietenpol Aircraft Company offers six wooden Sitka Spruce Official Pietenpol Air Camper component kits. Kits start at $17.50 for an Pietenpol Vertical Stabilizer kit. Pietenpol’s flying legacy […]
New book explains how to wire experimental aircraft
Now available is “The Aircraft Wiring Guide,” a new book for the aircraft homebuilder that explains the ins and outs of wiring a modern experimental aircraft.After talking to thousands of fellow homebuilders and giving many presentations at fly-ins around the country, the author, Marc Ausman, said he realized there was a need for information to design and […]
Phantom’s one man aircraft factory
By BILL WILSON The phone rings at Phantom Aeronautics in Three Rivers, Michigan. A customer is calling the kit aircraft company with a request. There is a very good chance he or she is also asking about the new 4-cycle engine Phantom is in the midst of testing. The milling machines, lathes, inventory control and […]
HI-IQ USB Battery Charger introduced
For the last three years, CommitLift has been supplying panel-mounted USB Battery Charging devices for homebuilt aircraft and other vehicles with 12-volt battery systems. Up until now, however, they had to be tailored to the device to be charged: iPhone, iPad, Samsung Galaxy Tablet, smart-phone, etc. However, the company’s latest charger can adapt to whatever device […]
Homebuilding okay in hangars
You probably know someone who is building an aircraft in a hangar at a publicly owned airport. It may surprise you to know that, until recently, the FAA considered that activity outside the appropriate use of a hangar. On July 22 the FAA released a proposed policy statement stating that the final assembly of homebuilt […]
New FAA hangar policy causing confusion
Two weeks after the FAA unveiled its draft policy for allowed uses in hangars at airports that receive federal grant funding, much confusion has emerged regarding the overall effect of the policy and what it means for hangar tenants. That’s particularly true for homebuilders, who have heard conflicting stories about what it means for building […]
Homebuilt groups meet
As the homebuilt community gears up to honor Experimental Aircraft Association founder Paul Poberezny at next year’s AirVenture, officials with the Aircraft Kit Industry Association (AKIA) recently sat down with senior staff at EAA to discuss a variety of issues. Both organizations support the One Week Wonder project, in which EAA will invite the public […]