Newsline

Homebuilt aviation guru and Fly Baby aficionado Ron Wanttaja, well known to KITPLANES readers for the myriad topics hes written on over the past 15 years, has published the third edition of Kit Airplane Construction, his venerable guide to building airplanes at home. Generally aimed at those in the audience whove yet to actually assemble a kit or build from plans, the book covers everything from an introduction to the Amateur-Built world and its regulations…

According to organizers of the US Sport Aviation Expo, to be held in Sebring, Florida, October 28-30, the event is being pushed back due to concerns about Hurricane Wilma. The new date is January 12-15, 2006. For more information, visit http://www.sport-aviation-expo.com/.…

Advanced Aviation has developed a firewall-forward package for the Lancair IV-P kit using the Garrett TPE 331 turbine engine. (Lancairs own Propjet uses the Walter 701E.) According to the company, five aircraft are under construction, with one flying and another just about ready to fly at press time. Advanceds use of the TPE 331 provides more power than the Walter894 shaft horsepower compared to 750and is said to burn 20% less fuel. In addition, the company…

Trio Avionics, manufacturer of the EZ Pilot autopilot for Experimental aircraft, announced that it has begun shipping its new EZ-1 Altitude Hold system. The EZ-1 is designed specifically for Experimental and Light-Sport Aircraft, yet the company says it has performance and safety features not found on many certified systems. The system incorporates a solid-state MEMS gyro for pitch stability, an accurate pressure sensor to measure altitude and accelerometers to monitor G forces. Fin adjustments to altitude…

Zenith Aircraft Company, manufacturer of kits for the popular Zodiac XL, STOL CH 701 and STOL CH 801 designs, has announced the availability of quickbuild (QB) kits for the Zodiac XL and 801. The Zodiac XL QB option promises to reduce construction time by 50%, from an estimated 500 building hours to about 250. Similarly, the 801 QB should drop build time from 750 to less than 400 hours. …

Lancair announced that full hull coverage for Lancair IV, IV-P and PropJet owners is now available through AIG Insurance for pilots who meet a number of criteria. Liability is limited to $1 million per occurrence and $100K per passenger. Full flight and ground coverage is available up to a maximum of $500K insured value. …

The Supplenator was first envisioned by the guys at General Aviation Modifications, Inc. as a backup power source for the company's PRISM electronic ignition system, as required by the FAA for certification. In typical GAMI fashion, they used the opportunity to create a feature-laden 35-amp, 14- or 28-volt power source that mounts to the accessory pad of most 360-cubic-inch and larger piston engines. The three-part system includes the 5.8-pound, direct-drive supplemental alternator, the remote-mounted electronic…

Garmin announced the debut of its latest handheld GPS unit, the GPSMAP 396. Featuring XM WX Satellite Weather, the 396 includes NEXRAD, METARs, TAFs, TFRs, lightning and winds aloft information, plus a variety of other weather products to help pilots make informed navigational decisions in flight. When connected to the Garmin GTX 330 transponder, the unit can display traffic information, and it retains the terrain alerts and obstacles database found on the company's popular GPSMAP…

After gathering opinions from pilots at Oshkosh AirVenture and Sun n Fun over the past few years, Icom America has announced the availability of two new handhelds-the IC-A24, which features nav and comm channels, and the IC-A6, which features comm capability only. These air band transceivers feature large backlit displays and keypads for easy use at altitude; the light stays on until you turn it off, a handy feature for flying at night. Both feature flip-flop…

David Codding of Santa Rosa, California, became the first builder to fly his own Sportsman 2+2 after completing much of the aircraft at Glasair Aviations Customer Assembly Center (CAC) in Arlington, Washington. Starting with a complete fastbuild kit, Codding spent a total of three weeks at the center working 8 hours a day, five days a week, with a crew of factory assistants. At the end of the three weeks, he ended up with an…