Zenith Aircraft Company is reporting that its CH 750 kit aircraft has cleared evaluation by the newly formed NKET (National Kit Evaluation Team) as compliant with Experimental/Amateur-Built rules. That is, the kit, which was introduced after the moratorium on kit evaluations was placed in early 2008, has been evaluated and leaves the “major portion” of work still to be done by the builder.
According to Zenith, the FAA’s four-man team spent two days at the factory in Mexico, Missouri, evaluating kit components and documents to reach this conclusion.
While it is not required that the kit you’re considering be on the so-called “51% List” to be eligible for construction and registration as an Experimental/Amateur-Built aircraft, pre-approval is a benefit to the builder and the inspector signing off the airplane before first flight. In essence, the kit has been vetted to provide the builder with enough of the work to fit into the rules.
In the next few weeks, the CH 750 is expected to go on the FAA’s “Revised Listing of Amateur-Built Aircraft Kits.” Zenith’s staff members said they were pleased with the NKET’s visit. “Based on the FAA’s on-site inspections and our discussions the STOL CH 750 kit will be added to the FAA list of of eligible aircraft kits,” said Zenith Aircraft Company’s president Sebastien Heintz.
The NKET was established with the revisions in the rules governing Experimental/Amateur-Built aircraft last summer as a response to complaints that the previous system, which employed individual inspectors across the U.S., was too subjective and inconsistent. All new kits will be evaluated by the same four-member NKET team.
For more information on the CH 750, visit Zenith’s web site.
