![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=534&h=462&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?")
![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?")
Potpourri
Potpourri (pronounced “poh’purree”), taken literally from the French origin, is translated “rotten pot.” In English, though, it means a collection of small things; in...
Metal Magic: Learning To Love the Step Drill
KITPLANES editor at large Paul Dye explains the best times to use the so-called step drill (also called a UniBit) for drilling larger holes...
Disintegrated Drive Coupling
Ever wonder why the standby alternator or vacuum pump isn’t working? There is a drive coupling that is designed to break if something becomes...
Design Process: Wingtips
In our study of wing design, we have progressed from the inner portion and the flaps to the outer part of the span and...
Archive: December 1993
Our end-of-year issue for 1993 was then, as it is now, the annual “homebuilt directory,” which in this edition packed 487 aircraft into a...
The First Liar
Throughout the history of places where pilots gather—be it a hangar, lounge or friendly saloon—one thing has always held true: the old saying that...
AirVenture By RV?
Since my Van’s RV-10 first took flight in 2014, I’ve made it to Oshkosh five times. The first four were flying the airplane from...
Dreams Take Flight
“Grandpa Kerry, where do unwanted airplane projects come from?”
I choked on my ice cream. The grandpa moniker is still as startling to me as...
Overheard at AirVenture
AirVenture 2021 has just concluded as I scratch this out, making it a good time for a warble about the doings seen and heard...
In Case You Missed It
X Marks the Spot
Light and slow, yet lacking control skittishness, the X-Air is a simple and fun way to go nowhere in particular. By Bob Grimstead.
