Barnaby Wainfan
Barnaby is a Technical Fellow for Northrop Grumman’s Advanced Design organization. A private pilot with single-engine and glider ratings, Barnaby has been involved in the design of unconventional airplanes including canards, joined wings, flying wings and some too strange to fall into any known category.
Wind Tunnel
Learn how wingtip vortices are generated and how wake turbulence can affect your aircraft.
The STOL Equation
Barnaby Wainfan explains the challenges designers face in creating viable STOL aircraft.
Wind Tunnel
The way lift is distributed along a wing's span affects both the structure and its aerodynamics.
Understanding and Avoiding Spins
A pilots ability to recover from a spin depends just as much on the design characteristics of the airplane as on stick-and-rudder skills.
Interference Drag Adds Up
Barnaby Wainfan explains the role of properly designed wing-fuselage junctions in reducing interference drag.
Wind Tunnel
Barnaby Wainfan examines the design factors that can mitigate damage in an accident and increase the chances of survival.
Wind Tunnel
Its easy to get carried away with new systems and technology that promise to make your airplane faster, smarter and even safer. But sometimes more is just more.
Wind Tunnel
Involved in the flight testing of a friends aircraft, Barnaby Wainfan contemplates the consequences (and wisdom) of designing an aircraft around an engine that may prove unsatisfactory or, worse, unavailable.
Wind Tunnel
Youd think a V-tail would have much to offer over a conventional tail in both reduced drag and lower weight. But how does it really pan out?
Wind Tunnel
How do the power-to-weight ratio, wing loading, drag effects and propeller choices affect an aircrafts climb rate and climb angle?
In Case You Missed it
Aero ‘lectrics
Jim Weir takes a look at low-cost and free CAD software available to help you document modifications you've made to your aircraft.
Editor’s Log
As Paul Dye takes the helm at KITPLANES, he looks forward to covering this exciting time in the Experimental aircraft community.
Making Dreams Come True
First liftoff of the Dream Tundra flown (Photo: Georgia Kinninger) When the Homebuilding movement...