Experimenter

October 2013

Experimenter is a magazine created by EAA for people who build airplanes. We will report on amateur-built aircraft as well as ultralights and other light aircraft.

Issue link: http://experimenter.epubxp.com/i/194874

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N e w s Fr o m H Q AirVenture Awards Aplenty Monnett leads parade of award recipients John Monnett, Sonex Aircraft founder, was presented with the Freedom of Flight Award during the annual membership meeting at EAA AirVenture Oshkosh by Chairman Jack Pelton. It is the organization's highest honor, bestowed annually to an individual whose contributions to aviation closely mirror the integrity, entrepreneurship, and innovative activities of EAA members. Monnett has dedicated his life to making "fun flight" affordable and accessible to everyone. The first airplane he marketed, the Sonerai, cost $1,200 in the 1970s and is still considered one of the best values in aviation. Help Build a Plane in Seven Days at AirVenture 2014 At EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2014, visitors will build and finish a Zenith CH 750 in seven days. Charlie Becker, EAA director of communities and homebuilt community manager, announced the project during this year's convention. "We plan to have a riveting booth where people can pull one rivet on the project," he said. "And with about 7,000 rivets in the airplane, that's about 7,000 different people who can be a part of this." The homebuilding project will likely occur on EAA's main street—Celebration Way—for maximum exposure and to show just how much easier kits are to build today. People will be able to watch the project transform from parts to a plane, while talking to "homebuilding ambassadors" who can speak about the building process and answer questions. "The goal is to show people that with the kits today anyone who has the desire and who knows which end of the screwdriver to use can learn the skills they need to build an aircraft," Becker said. Type Club Coalition Welcomes Sonex CEO EAA is pleased to announce that Sonex CEO Jeremy Monnett is joining American Bonanza Society President Tom Turner as co-chair of the Type Club Coalition (TCC). The TCC brings type clubs, owners, and operators of experimental and certificated aircraft together to share best practices, exchange information, and improve safety. "I recognize that for years there has been a perception that experimental amateur-built (E-AB) safety does not match the record of the GA fleet," Monnett said. "My main goals in co-leading the TCC are twofold: to increase fleet safety in general and to counter the incorrect assumption that E-AB aircraft are not as inherently safe as type-certificated aircraft. "I hope to build on Sonex's recent transition training expe- 6 Vol.2 No.10 / October 2013 rience and bring a workable program of safety enhancements to TCC members." The TCC is leading the effort to unite individual type clubs, E-AB owners and builders groups, and other aviation communities. The coalition will help its members establish checklists and standard operating procedure documents, create networks of CFI LODA holders available for transition training, and encourage pilot proficiency for all types. The TCC expects to publish its first example and guidance materials in September. EAA encourages all type clubs—or groups of owners of types that do not have a club—to be a part of the TCC. Interested parties may apply by e-mailing govt@eaa.org or by calling EAA advocacy and safety at 920-426-6522.

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