Dennis Kirkwood thought he was done building airplanes at 77. Then COVID hit and he and a partner built a Hummel UltraCruiser.
Experimental Aircraft
Zenith Aircraft returns to Texas in February
Zenith’s hands-on workshop returns to Boerne Stage Airfield (5C1), north of San Antonio, Texas, Feb. 23-24, with an informal fly-in for Zenith owners on Feb. 24.
Flying car company launches crowdfunding campaign
According to James Mauch, a Samson Sky board member, crowdfunding is commonly used as “an early step in an overall campaign to raise large funds but has the unique ability to allow many smaller investors the same opportunity as bigger investors” with new technology in new companies.
Creating the Tiny Stearman
What do you do when you want a Stearman but can’t afford one? You create your own Tiny Stearman, like Chris Hiatt did from his Baby Great Lakes.
Customers hold the key to Van’s future
New filings in bankruptcy court by Van’s Aircraft shows that one of the big unknowns is how many customers are willing to accept a 30% price increase on a kit they already ordered.
No flight experience proves fatal for kit airplane builder
The noncertificated pilot’s failure to maintain control of the airplane, which led to the airplane exceeding its critical angle-of-attack and subsequent aerodynamic stall. Contributing to the accident was the pilot’s decision to attempt a flight with no previous flight experience.
Looks like an egg, flies like a rocket
Richard Hodge, the force behind the YouTube channel Aircraft Adventures, which is for “those who tirelessly dig for the obscure, quaint, or downright bizarre in the aviation world,” recently posted a video about the tiny egg-shaped Questair Venture, designed by Jim Griswold, who designed the Piper Malibu and worked with Cirrus in later years.
Obstructed catalytic converter brings down experimental airplane
A partial loss of engine power due to an obstructed catalytic converter, which most likely resulted from the pilot’s failure to properly repair or replace it after it was likely damaged during a previous incident. Contributing to the accident was the pilot’s failure to maintain adequate airspeed during the forced landing, which led to an exceedance of the airplane’s critical angle-of-attack and an aerodynamic stall.
uAvionix updates AV-30-E software for experimental aircraft
One of the primary features of the update is support for the AV-APA (Analog Port Adapter), an accessory that connects the AV-30 to legacy installed autopilots, company officials noted.