![[Credit: AdobeStock]](https://www.kitplanes.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/AdobeStock_51865118.jpg?w=534&h=462&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?")
![At Sun ‘n Fun 2026, Viking Aircraft Engines surprised the crowd with its first complete kit — the V-42, a high-wing twin powered by two Honda-based engines. Here’s an early look. [Credit: Andrew Robinson]](https://www.kitplanes.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/P1020293.jpg?w=265&h=198&crop=1 "Viking V-42 Twin")
![A STOL CH 750 [Credit: Mike Davenport]](https://www.kitplanes.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/STOL-CH-750.jpg?w=265&h=198&crop=1 "Why Are So Many Airplanes Yellow?")
![A Zenith STOL CH701 on Zenair amphibious floats rests on a sandbar on the Caribbean island of Guadeloupe. [Credit: Zenith Aircraft]](https://www.kitplanes.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/zenair-floats-STOL_CH_701a-Topaz-Gigapixel-2x-scale-Topaz-Gigapixel-2x-scale.jpg?w=265&h=198&crop=1 "Zenith STOL CH 701 at 40: The Iconic ‘Sky Jeep’ Design Audit"){kind=tracking}
The Dawn Patrol
Dick Starks and The Dawn Patrol saddle, er, trailer up and head to the Salute to Veterans Air Show in Columbia, Missouri. Who else could lend his crimping pliers to a couple of sailors to fix an F-18s wiring problem?
Ask the DAR
Can a builder modify a Vans RV-12 kit under the 51% rule? How about changing the gross weight of a RANS S-7? Plus, the FAA releases revised homebuilding rules.
Engine Beat
There's a lot to know about aircraft oil: what to use, when to use it, when to change it. Steve Ells sheds some light on this essential fluid.
Light Stuff
Dave Martin looks at the future of ultralight-like SLSA trainers, and what may be in store from the FAA.
Letters
Compound Modifier Yes, the turbo-compound engine written about by Paul Lamar does make a good deal of sense. It is no more...
The Independence Project: Avionics
It’s time to install the shiny, expensive boxes in the RV-12. Yes, the avionics package goes in… and it’s not as difficult as it used to be. By Dave Martin.
Build a Bear: Mellow Yellow
Dave Prizio and team build a paint booth (too small), test drive charcoal masks and bunny suits, and discover the joys of covering your homebuilt plane with $400 per gallon paint.
In Case You Missed It
What Are the Odds?
My first winter in Oregon came and went. The weather’s been fairly nice leading...
Around the Patch
Editor-in-Chief Marc Cook discusses the mood at the annual AOPA gathering, where he found an upbeat vibe, cautious optimism about the FAAs pending homebuilding rules changes, and a positive announcement from Glasair Aviation.
Statistics, Lies and Damn Lies…
Aviation is a numbers game. We fly the airplane by the numbers, we use...