![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=534&h=462&crop=1 "Viking V-42 Twin")
![[Credit: Van's Aircraft]](https://www.kitplanes.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/IMG_5238.jpg?w=265&h=198&crop=1 "Part 22 Gets Real: Van’s Delivers the First MOSAIC-Certified Airplane")
![[Credit: Wikimedia Commons]](https://www.kitplanes.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/4_rutan_a_longez.jpg_preview.jpg?w=265&h=198&crop=1 "Rutan Symposium Turns to the Coming Canard Maintenance Crisis")
![[Credit: Flight Desgn GmbH]](https://www.kitplanes.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/1_mosaic_flightdesign.jpg_preview.jpg?w=265&h=198&crop=1 "FAA Accepts ASTM Standards, Clearing the Last Hurdle for MOSAIC")
![[Credit: magniX]](https://www.kitplanes.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/Magnix.jpg?w=265&h=198&crop=1 "magniX Opens Pre-Orders for an Electric Engine Aimed at Homebuilders")
Garmin Introduces GPSMAP 495
Two weeks before Sun N Fun, Garmin has introduced a new model to its portable GPS lineup, the GPSMAP495. While rumors have been circulating for some time that a successor to the popular 496 was about to be released-with the most common belief that it would have a different form factor than the -96 series and a touch screen-the 495 is more of an addition to the middle of the line rather than an expansion…
Upcoming in Home Machinist
The Wright brothers were first with powered flight. But who supplied the power? Without Charlie Taylor, 1903 would have been just another year of...
Video: Lancair Evolution Makes First Flight
Lancair International sent us this video of the first flight of the turboprop Evolution, which took place on Friday, March 21. Well-known test pilot...
Amy's RV-10: Is This Builder's Remorse?
Was he just contemplating his work, I wondered, as I walked toward my husband, who was sitting catatonic in a green plastic chair in...
Marc's Sportsman: The Second “Annual” Begins
I snuck out to the hangar in late February to make a simple modification to my Glastar Sportsman and inadvertently began the annual condition...
RANS Chaos and Sakota Aerobats Are Back
Due to popular demand, the RANS S-9 Chaos and S-10 Sakota midwing one- and two-place aerobatic kit aircraft are back in production, the company...
FAA Issues Emergency AD on Precision Fuel Injection Systems-
The FAA on Wednesday announced an Emergency Airworthiness Directive on certain Precision Airmotive RSA-5 and RSA-10 fuel injection servos to be inspected before further flight. Two recent incidents have been blamed on a loose servo plug. According to the AD, the servo plug gasket is thought to have shrunk with engine heat, which causes it to …
FAA Issues Emergency AD on Precision Fuel Injection Systems—Experimental Pilots Should...
The FAA on Wednesday announced an Emergency Airworthiness Directive on certain Precision Airmotive RSA-5 and RSA-10 fuel injection servos to be inspected before further...
AEA Advises FAA: Evolution Not Revolution on ADS-B
The Aircraft Electronics Association commented recently on a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) regarding ADS-B, or Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast technology. (ADS-B employs Mode S...
Tool Tech: Does That Bolt Need a Washer?
Do all bolts need washers? Usually, only two factors are involved. Is the hole oversized, and is the bolt configured to work without the...
In Case You Missed It
Buzzwords
Pilots compensate all the time for aerodynamic effects such as ground effect, often without being conscious of it. By Ed Kolano.
Wind Tunnel
When is an airplane in trim? At least to the pilot, the airplane is trimmed when no stick force is required to maintain equilibrium. So how do we achieve this? Barnaby Wainfan explains any number of ways to go about it, including the use of trimtabs, spring systems, sparrow strainers and variable incidence tails.
What’s the Deal With AN Hardware?
As a new kit builder, you may have wondered about that gold-colored AN hardware...
25th Anniversary: Homebuilts – The Enduring Soul of Innovation
This month we reflect on the changes we've seen over a quarter century of covering the homebuilt aircraft world; by Cindy Pedersen.