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Paul Dye

Paul Dye
916 POSTS 27 COMMENTS
Paul Dye, KITPLANES® Editor at Large, retired as a Lead Flight Director for NASA’s Human Space Flight program, with 50 years of aerospace experience on everything from Cubs to the Space Shuttle. An avid homebuilder, he began flying and working on airplanes as a teen and has experience with a wide range of construction techniques and materials. He flies an RV-8 and SubSonex jet that he built, an RV-3 that he built with his pilot wife, as well as a Dream Tundra and an electric Xenos motorglider they completed. Currently, they are building an F1 Rocket. A commercially licensed pilot, he has logged over 6000 hours in many different types of aircraft and is an A&P, FAA DAR, EAA Tech Counselor and Flight Advisor; he was formerly a member of the Homebuilder’s Council. He consults and collaborates in aerospace operations and flight-testing projects across the country.

Ninety Knots to Oshkosh

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Practice, practice, practice - it's what we all tell folks to do before they head to the Fiske Arrival and the great Airventure experience! Flying in to the "the show" is a bucket list item for most pilots, and it requires you to be sharp - but is flying at 90 knots enough?

Kitplanes Flies the New RV-12iS!

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Kitplanes was there for the first flight of the new RV-12iS in early July, and we were given a chance to evaluate the kit and aircraft improvements with a flight soon after. The new RV-12iS showcases its new engine - and many more detailed refinements that make this a capable, comfortable airplane.

Van's New Secret Project

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I recently got a call from Van's Aircraft saying they had something I really needed to see--so I saddled up my favorite cross-country machine...

Priming (with) the Pump!

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There is a never ending debate, with good arguments on both sides, about priming the simple four-cylinder, carbureted Lycoming engine before starting. For as...

The LONG Spar

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I know, the picture isn't very good, and the lighting is poor - but there in the middle are the recently joined left and right spars for our nascent Xenos Motorglider - and if it were any longer, it would need two zip codes!

Basking in the Sun

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You know that summer is here when you see shy fuel tanks, basking in the sun! In this case, we were able to capture the...

Editor’s Log

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Failure of imagination.

A Collection of Engines

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Poring over press releases from all "Big Three" piston aircraft engine manufacturers got me thinking about the engines I have out in my own hangar, hanging off our stable of airplanes.

The ATC Privatization Proposal – A Bad Idea for General Aviation

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President Trump's characterization of the United States Air Traffic Control system was a statement, unsupported by evidence, that listeners are supposed to believe...

Field Fixin'

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We had everything but a jack- all the tools we needed to change a tail wheel on our Tundra were a set of pliers,...

In Case You Missed It

Completions

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Builders share their successes.

Home Shop Machinist

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Perlage (or pearling)-the art of decorative spotting.

Aero ‘lectrics

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Jim Weir responds to a reader request to find a way to make any cell phone turn on an electrical device.

The $250 Smoke System

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Why buy a commercial system when its easy to roll your own?