Kerry Fores
Kerry Fores was born and raised in Oshkosh, WI and was interested in homebuilding by age 12. Between 1998 and 2003 he scratchbuilt and polished a Sonex, which he named Metal Illness. Kerry logged nearly 500 hours in Metal Illness and was awarded Plans Built Champion at AirVenture 2006. Kerry is retired from a 21-year career at Sonex Aircraft, most of it dedicated to supporting builders. Kerry is on the web at thelifeofdanger.com.
The Watch List
Is anything more disheartening than dropping a piece of hardware in your airframe and not being able to find it? Yes. A loose nut...
A Crowd of One
Kitplanes contributing editor Kerry Fores, a lifelong resident of Oshkosh, Wisconsin, self-populated AirVenture's famous Brown Arch in March while self-isolating. This video is a...
Pilot: The Verb
I pretend to play guitar. To my neighbor’s irritation, I use a real guitar when I pretend, not an air guitar. While learning new...
Murphy’s Law, Occam’s Razor
Ed, an aerospace engineer, and Bill, a 14th Century philosopher, walk into your workshop…and if you’re smart you’ll let them stay and you’ll hear...
The One True Airspeed
True airspeed is coy. It hides behind the more obvious speeds who tart themselves up with a meaningless facade. It’s never overt. It makes...
The Decision to Polish
To quote a friend, “When you paint, the aircraft will never look better than when it leaves the paint shop. When you polish, it...
Just In Case
I’ve participated in countless conversations with homebuilders that included the phrase, “Just in case.” The phrase is usually used while discussing flight safety scenarios...
Unforeseeable Experiences
Of this I’m convinced; had I arrived in Fargo, North Dakota in a Skyhawk, Sundowner or Cherokee instead of a homebuilt, my brief stay...
Affordable! Fast! Too Hot!
Marketing departments willfully ignore the difference between objective and subjective statements, especially the marketing department claiming $3990 is an affordable monthly payment for a...
Spare the Wait and Carry On
What began, for one homebuilder, as a cross-country odyssey to AirVenture turned into an altogether different odyssey when his airplane’s voltmeter began an un-commanded...
In Case You Missed It
Do-It-Yourself Ejection Seat
Adding lift to the seat allows a builder to exit his Fly Baby easily (plus it’s virtually undetectable to bystanders).
Modifying Tools
Building an airplane in the mountains has its downside. The nearest tool store is...
The STOL Equation
Barnaby Wainfan explains the challenges designers face in creating viable STOL aircraft.
