![Oshkosh is more popular than ever with three-quarters of a million people in attendance at AirVenture 2026. [Credit: LeRoy Cook]](https://www.kitplanes.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/IMG_7321-Topaz-Gigapixel-2x-scale.jpg?w=534&h=462&crop=1 "Wide World of Airplanes"){kind=tracking}
![Maintenance technician William Vergonet conducts an inspection on a Cub. [Credit: Lisa Turner]](https://www.kitplanes.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/IMG_3535.jpg?w=265&h=198&crop=1 "Post-Flight Maintenance Debrief")
![Pat McKiernan has found that he and his dad who built this beautiful RV-7 simply learned to enjoy the build. [Credit: Bill Wilson]](https://www.kitplanes.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/Builder.jpg?w=265&h=198&crop=1 "Life Lessons From Building an Airplane")
![[Credit: AdobeStock]](https://www.kitplanes.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/AdobeStock_51865118.jpg?w=265&h=198&crop=1 "FAA MOSAIC Rule Fully Implemented")
![My 36 year old clipboard from when I started at Boeing. Engineering ruler and fastener/fastener hole cheat sheets. [Credit: Andrew Robinson]](https://www.kitplanes.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/Liaison_clipboard.jpg?w=265&h=198&crop=1 "What Is a Liaison Engineer?")
Free Flight
Surprisingly, building a metal aircraft may also mean getting familiar with fiberglass. Here are some tips to make that portion of the build less painful.
Build It Better: Learning from History
Everything we know about aviation comes from the experience of designers, builders and pilots who came before us. Understanding their successes and failures can help us fly and build more safely.
Aero ‘lectrics
Don’t waste $250: Here’s all you need to know to install an inexpensive kitchen clock as a timer on your plane’s instrument panel.
Wind Tunnel
Nine simple rules, distilled from years of experience (making—and fixing—assorted mistakes), can help any aircraft designer avoid disaster.
2013 Kit Aircraft Buyer’s Guide
Here’s a look at the newest designs and how the kit aircraft segment of Experimental aviation has changed over the past year. By Mary Bernard and Suzanne B. Bopp.
Editor’s Log
The explosion of ADS-B technology, the new Van’s RV-14 and an editor in a ballistic-parachute simulator—AirVenture was full of exciting developments, as always. Plus: a send-off for Editor-at-Large Marc Cook. By Editor-in-Chief Mary Bernard.
What’s New
Dual Electronics debuts ADS-B unit, Garmin introduces GDL 39, Approach Fast Stack’s Pro-X hub and Dynon premiers D1 Pocket Panel.
Alternative Energies
Chip Yates is a man with a plan—to follow Lindbergh’s historic transatlantic flight in an all-electric plane. The flight’s planned for 2014; in the meantime, there are battery challenges to solve. By Dean Sigler.
Down to Earth
An Alaskan cruise provides a perfect excuse to cross the country in an RV-10, from Florida to Washington, to board the ship. By Amy Laboda.
Free Flight
What does a video game have in common with building an airplane? More than you might think.
In Case You Missed It
Build It Better: Play by the Rules
Some rules are made for you, and some rules are made by you. Those personal rules create a higher level of safety for you and your passengers, and they are the mark of professionalism in a pilot.
