![Careful planning and determination will get you to your goal of building and flying your own airplane. [Credit: AdobeStock]](https://www.kitplanes.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/Pulsar-Sunset.jpg?w=534&h=462&crop=1 "Last Bits")
![[Credit: AdobeStock]](https://www.kitplanes.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/AdobeStock_262642207_AGCuesta.jpg?w=265&h=198&crop=1 "Winging It")
![Lowell Farrand spent years serving as an FAA DAR and is in the EAA Hall of Fame. He offers sound advise to builders. [Credit: Bill Wilson]](https://www.kitplanes.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/unnamed-4.jpg?w=265&h=198&crop=1 "Think Like a Builder")
![The 160 hp turbocharged Rotax 916iS is a four-stroke piston engine with redundant electronic fuel injection and ignition. [Credit: BPR Rotax]](https://www.kitplanes.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/PIC_916-iS_iSc-2.jpg?w=265&h=198&crop=1 "2026 Engine Buyer’s Guide")
![The alternative to bending down as the propeller is pulled through the compression stroke is to keep the back straight and bend the knees slightly, stepping away in a crouch. [Credit: LeRoy Cook]](https://www.kitplanes.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/IMG_1519-scaled.jpg?w=265&h=198&crop=1 "Manual Starting Methods")
Flapjacks and Fly-Ins
One of the most enjoyable and useful “tools” is membership in a local chapter of the EAA.
Let Me Down Easy
Emergency Glide is a valuable tool to give the pilot some breathing room to troubleshoot in the air and have the controlled descent handled by the EFIS.
In Case You Missed It
Engine Beat
What makes an excellent Experimental exhaust system? High quality 321 stainless tubes, neat welds and flex points. By Steve Ells.
Light Stuff
As Light Sport Aircraft become more popular, so too will the desire to learn more about maintaining one of the most common engines used in these designs, the Rotax four-strokes. Columnist Dave Martin goes back to school to learn about routine Rotax maintenance as well as safe operation of the popular engine.
Design Process: Landing Gear, Part 5
For the past few editions of Wind Tunnel, we’ve been exploring the factors that...
Light Stuff
Now in its fourth year, the U.S. Sport Aviation Expo, aka Sebring Expo, continues to grow, and presents a golden opportunity for Light Sport aircraft enthusiasts to see the latest and greatest additions to the category. Jim Lauerman of Avemco Insurance was also on hand to present a forum about insurance for LSAs.