Kitplanes

Susan BrunnerSusan spent seven years with her husband building their Lancair IV-P. Her administrative expertise was invaluable for Internet searches and acquisition of parts...

Shopmaster Shop TalkDear Bob Fritz: I have the opportunity to purchase a Shopmaster Lathe/Mill combination similar to yours, but a 1998 model which has...

Oshkosh, Wisconsin-Build A Plane (BAP), the non-profit organization that helps kids learn science, technology, engineering and mathematics by building real airplanes, is in need of aircraft donations. Currently there are over 50 projects across the United States, plus others in India, the United Kingdom and Nigeria, and more than a 100 projects are forecast to be operating before the end of 2008. Kids are given project aircraft of all descriptions, from cabin class…

Builders share their successes.

You're not alone if you've been flummoxed or frustrated when trying to decode technical drawings or blueprints. They seem to use a language all their own, one that many of us are not privy to. Fear not. Author Bob Fritz will give you the tools you need to visualize the item being described, and hell make such documents intelligible to the uninitiated.

Columnist Jim Weir reminds us that its good to laugh at ourselves once in a while, and, to that end, he acts as an unofficial translator between pilots and the FAA, construing what they mean by what they say, and what they mean by what they don't say. He also details the latest contributions to Murphys Law from the world of aviation.

Columnist Barnaby Wainfan discusses the factors that affect the longitudinal stability of an aircraft during a variety of maneuvers. Designers make compromises to keep stick forces down so that a pilot can control an airplane, but sometimes they go too far, and light control forces can result in problems that are just as serious as those posed by forces that are too heavy. Whats a designer to do? The most important considerations are presented.

In keeping with the spirit of this years Directory of Plansbuilt Aircraft, Editor-in-Chief Marc Cook extols the virtues of enjoying the process of building of an airplane as much as the flying of it.

Among the news items this month are the announcement of extended-range fuel tanks for the Arion Aircraft Lightning, a flight bag thats customized for RV aircraft, a light-aircraft jack and a new transceiver from Microair Avionics of Australia.