Tom Wilson
Pumping avgas and waxing flight school airplanes got Tom into general aviation in 1973, but the lure of racing cars and motorcycles sent him down a motor journalism career heavy on engines and racing. Today he still writes for peanuts and flies for fun.
A Promising New Race Day
It's 45 degrees as the night hints at ceding itself to the sun in Reno, Nevada. In countless hotel rooms, houses, trailers and motorhomes...
Sport Close!
Things are heating up in the headlining Sport Gold class at the National Championship Air Races in Reno, Nevada. The last few years the...
AirVenture Whatsit?
You're forgiven if you thought Homebuilt Camping at AirVenture was an RV fly-in. The Van Grunsven aluminum squad so out numbers all other designs...
Aerocreeper
AirVenture is long over, but we're still digging out from the information deluge the show provides. A good example is the Aerocreeper, an adjustable...
Dark Aero 1
First time exhibitors, Dark Aero is three brothers with an engineering bent and a promising kit plane in the works. Called Dark Aero 1,...
Authentic Sopwith & Gnome
If you've had the rare chance to closely examine a World War I aircraft it soon became obvious why so few early warbirds have...
Whispering Again
Delbert Sinor of Ozark Mountain Aviation gave us the latest on the Whisper, a 2-place side-by-side kit from South Africa. Sinor offers a builder...
Timber Tiger Ryan-A-Like
So, what's a nice Ryan like this doing in the homebuilt display at AirVenture? Looking the part, obviously, and yes, it is not a...
Early Warbirds Beginning to Gather
World War One aviation may have peaked in the public's interest in the late 1960's, but with the 100th anniversary of the end of...
In Case You Missed It
Down to Earth
Everyone can use another set of eyes on a project, and sometimes a technical counselor is just the one to provide them. By Amy Laboda.
Design Process: Horizontal Tail
The horizontal tail has two functions. It provides control power to trim and maneuver...
Alternative Energies
Chip Yates is a man with a plan—to follow Lindbergh’s historic transatlantic flight in an all-electric plane. The flight’s planned for 2014; in the meantime, there are battery challenges to solve. By Dean Sigler.