As of July 2006, the first flight is looming on the horizon. There is a lot left to do on the airplane, but I don't want to get caught unprepared when the airplane is finally ready to go. For various and sundry financial reasons I have not flown as pilot in command for about 10 years. Clearly, that must change if I am going to make the first flight. So, last January I began flying a Diamond Katana DA-20 with instructor and RV-7A builder James Jula. I am now current in this aircraft and am very happy to be back in the air again.
About 2/3 of my time is in Cessna 152/172 aircraft, with the remainder in 2 and 4 place Pipers. The Katana is a low wing, two-place tricycle gear aircraft with a non-stearable nosewheel, flown with a stick. It is a bit more expensive to rent than the more familiar planes, but by flying the Katana from the right seat I can get comfortable with the configuration of the RV-8A: stick in the right hand and throttle to the left.
My intent is to fly as much as possible until the RV is nearly ready, and then to take some RV transition training with Mike Seager.
Hopefully in the not-too-distant future, there will be pictures here of an RV flying!
The Katana, flown from HIO to the airstrip we live on, in our back yard and ready to go.
The Oregon Coast, one of the many great places to fly in the Pacific Northwest.
4/15/2011: After nearly 2 years in the air, it seems time to fit the wheel pants, gear leg fairings, and intersection fairings. I started this effort in January, and it has been a bigger job than anticipated. Here are a few pictures ... hope to have everything installed and the condition inspection completed in time for the good weather to arrive, currently scheduled for sometime around July 4.
Initial fitting of wheel pant halves.
First Flight
Aligning front pant.
Aligning left main
Initial fitting of left pant.
I purchased pre-formed intersection fairings, and they fit quite well except for the pieces that fit on the upper main gear legs. My brake lines interferred with these pieces, so I figured it would be easier to extend the fiberglass than to re-route the brake lines. This took a lot of time, and will likely be re-done next winter as the results are not picturesque (note: no finished picture!)
4249 days, or a tad over 11.64 years
