KALAMAZOO, Mich. — The Air Zoo is now home to a new plane — an 1100 R Mini-Max. The 1100 R Mini-Max is an ultra light aircraft kit that was primarily used for recreational flying. The wooden, mid-wing, open cockpit aircraft features a single engine and one seat. Dale Schieber, of Galesburg, originally purchased the […]
Aircraft
Snakes on a (vintage) plane
There are certain traditions at airshows. For example, AirVenture is not complete for me until I see Ron Johnson’s 1941 PT-22. Although it’s technically a Warbird, Johnson, who hails from Rockford, Ill., parks in the Vintage Area — and places toy rubber snakes on the wings of his airplane. According to Johnson, the snakes are […]
Flying the Curtiss Pusher
The twin airfoil canard out front looks like a box kite, one of the prominent building materials is bamboo, and there was never a Pilot’s Operating Handbook of any kind produced for the airplane. However, when Kermit Weeks lines the Curtiss Pusher up on a 5,000-foot grass strip to take his first hop, heads turn […]
Pilot celebrates 100th birthday flying his Evektor SportStar
By John McVey, The Journal MARTINSBURG, W.Va. — Thomas Guy Reynolds Jr. eased back on the stick of his Evektor SportStar light sport aircraft and it lifted effortlessly off the runway at the Eastern West Virginia Regional Airport (MRB). He circled the field three times, making a couple of low passes over the runway for […]
Tecnam offers bargain-priced Echo Classic Light
Major Italian producer Tecnam has launched the P92 Classic Light microlight. This is the seventh-generation model in Tecnam P92 range of airplanes, which this year celebrated 20 years of production. The company reports that over two decades of service, “P92’s worldwide fleet now stands at nearly 2,000 aircraft with 200,000 flown hours. The P92 Classic […]
Buried Spitfires set to take to the sky
A lost squadron of Spitfires buried in Burma after World War II could fly over Britain within three years. According to a report in the Sydney Morning Herald, digging for the hoard of at least 36 Mark XIV fighters will begin in January at a remote airfield. Should the efforts succeed, a number of the […]
How old is your airplane…really?
The average general aviation aircraft is more than 30 years old. However, a number of factors contribute to an aircraft’s true age, which may not be the same as its age in calendar years, according to officials with the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association Air Safety Institute. Learn how to recognize the signs of aircraft […]
The family Cub
“They look like a field of buttercups,” is how one visitor to AirVenture 2012 described the sea of J-3 Cubs parked in the vintage area of Oshkosh. This year is the 75th anniversary of the popular Piper airplane and as part of the celebration Cubs arrived in droves at the big show, one after another […]
Hitting 100…
When talking of success stories in the Light-Sport Aircraft (LSA) world, consider Pipistrel. “This really important news kind of snuck up on me as a surprise,” observed U.S. representative, Michael Coates, “but I have just noticed that our multi-year cooperation with Pipistrel has resulted in selling our 100th aircraft recently!” According to Pipistrel boss Ivo […]