Sonex 1508

Construction of Sonex kit #1508 began in July 2011, and after 2,005 hours of building time, was completed in October 2016. The aircraft was built with standard gear, center controls, dual sticks & AeroVee engine. The FAA issued the airworthiness certificate on November 4, 2016. Having only a PPC endorsement on my Sport Pilot certificate, beginning in February 2017 I trained in a Citabria 7ECA & Czech Sport Cruiser to receive a Sport ASEL endorsement in August 2017 & tailwheel endorsement in September 2017. The first flight of Sonex N296SX took place on November 29, 2017. The aircraft flew very well, the only trim required was a couple of turns on the Dial-A-Trim to bring the nose down after take-off. I am happy to report that all temperatures were "in the green", except for the pilot, the OAT being only about 35 degrees F made it kind of cold for me. The only deviations from plans were to add differential hydraulic brakes and electric flaps, with automatic flap stops at 10, 20 & 30 degrees. Judging from the first flight the Sonex is going to be a fun aircraft to fly, and I am looking forward to phase 1 flight testing and beyond. Thanks to all at Sonex aircraft for their builder assistance during my project, all of the people who stopped by my hangar to offer encouragement, and special thanks to Joe Schmidt and Paul Aydt at Spring City Aviation at KBUU. Their patience and training methods were key to making the first flight of Sonex N296SX successful.