Affordable Aviation

Editor’s note: This article first appeared on ByDanJohnson.com. I write about affordable aviation whenever interesting material is available. This website will eventually (probably by August or September) move to the AffordableAviation.com domain that I purchased many years ago. It’s important to me that pilots can actually afford to own and fly their own aircraft because […]

I first ran into Stefan Coetzee and KFA at Aero Friedrichshafen, my favorite light aircraft show in Europe. I was caught by the clever name. Easy to say, “KFA” sticks in your mind like a catchy tune. Kitplanes For Africa sounds like a company making aircraft that should have superior bush capabilities. It was a […]

I write about affordable aviation whenever interesting material is available. This website will eventually (probably by August or September) move to the AffordableAviation.com domain that I purchased many years ago. It’s important to me that pilots can actually afford to own and fly their own aircraft because I am one of you. I maintain you’ve […]

Do you know when you’re an airshow junkie, ‘er… enthusiast? Answer: When you actually enjoy observing the set-up process. I’ve made the following observation many times. The night before opening, with literally hours before the show starts, the place appears in a state of chaos. Pandemonium reigns. Vehicles, crates, equipment of every kind is seemingly […]

While you continue digesting FAA’s 318-page thriller on Mosaic, here’s a fun aircraft that does not have to spend even one minute meeting those new rules. I’ve written about the Part 103-compliant Dingo from Future Flight before (this article) but the delightful biplane is now entering production. Tom Peghiny of Flight Design USA fame, wrote, […]

Whenever I write about FAA’s Mosaic regulation, especially when I mentioned the date they predicted, a substantial percentage of all readers shrug this off, believing that FAA will never complete it on time. What if I told you they were ahead of schedule? Is that an unbelievable claim? Perhaps, but the proof is right here, […]

Can you hear it? Do you notice pilots all around you preparing for the annual pilgrimage to Oshkosh, Wisconsin for AirVenture 2023? Preflights happening. Engines firing up. Courses set on the EFIS. We’re off to the biggest aviation week of the year! One pre-show announcement came from one of our most stable and long-lived producers […]

Oshkosh is nearly here again so it must be seaplane flying time. America’s north is rich with open water for fun or safety. When the summer season arrives, seaplanes are at their finest. Indeed, AirVenture’s Seaplane Base operation is a whole show alongside the main show; if you’ve never gone, a visual treat awaits you. […]

Naturally, sharp-eyed ByDanJohnson.com readers already know about Chip’s big idea. See this article; scroll down. What you didn’t know is that this idea was unique enough to win a patent. That’s uncommon in recreational aviation, though, of course, an idea like this may go far beyond sport flying. Chip Erwin is one of those restless […]

A dozen years ago, fixed wing pilots thought very little about “gyrocopters” — as some people called them. Actually that word is a model name established by Igor Bensen, widely thought of as the father of this activity along with Juan de la Cierva of Spain, known for his pioneering autogyro work. The preferred term […]