Daughter’s story of dad’s record-setting homebuilt now available in paperback

Seattle — On July 25, 2010, Arnold Ebneter flew across the country in a plane he designed and built himself, setting a world record for aircraft of its class. He was 82 at the time and the flight represented the culmination of a dream he’d cultivated since his childhood in the 1930s.

In the book, “Propeller Under the Bed,” Eileen Bjorkman — a pilot and aeronautical engineer — shares her father’s journey from teenage airplane enthusiast to Air Force pilot and Boeing engineer. She gives us a glimpse into life growing up in a “flying family” with two pilots for parents, a family plane named Charlie and, quite literally, a propeller under her parents’ bed.

From early airplane designs serialized in magazines to the annual EAA AirVenture Oshkosh fly-in where you can see experimental aircraft on display, Bjorkman offers a personal take on the history of building something in your garage that you can legally fly, as well as how the homebuilt aircraft movement has contributed to aviation and innovation in America.

Arnold’s homebuilt, E-1, is now now on display at the EAA Museum in Oshkosh, according to Eileen’s blog.

The hardcover book was published in March 2017 and is still available for $29.95. The paperback version, released in August 2019, is priced at $22.95.