![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=534&h=462&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?")
![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")
Maintenance Tools
If you are going to do a proper job of maintaining your airplane, you will need some tools that don’t have much use outside of aviation.
Disconnected Pitot Line
Ever lose your airspeed in flight? The nylon lines held in the “push-grip” fittings must have some flexibility in them so they aren’t pulled...
Design Process: Roll Control
The primary function of the wing is to generate lift, but it must also incorporate control surfaces to control the airplane in roll.
Take a Ride In a Thorp T-18
Join Phil Mandel for a walkaround description and a brief flight in his Thorp T-18 homebuilt, one of the most affordable high-performance homebuilts on...
Glasair Aviation to Restart With Kits, Not Two Weeks to Taxi
Glasair Aviation is planning to emphasize kit sales and production first and restart TWTT later.
Don’t Get Stuck!
Have you ever found yourself in over your head when it comes to taking on a big project?
Pack Your Spotted Cow and Go
I heard Jester’s coarse voice and felt the impact of each syllable, “You. Nev-er. Leave. Your wingman.” I’m foreshadowing the past, though, so let...
In Case You Missed It
What’s New
Meet a new South African import LSA, read news from Jeppesen about updating your Chelton system, and a paint sprayer/respirator combination unit may interest the would-be plane painters among you.
Here We Go Again
Looking ahead to the aircraft kits and plans—for airplanes and rotorcraft—available for 2025
Thrust Line Effects
The propeller of an airplane generates thrust that drives it through the air. In...