Even though I’ve explained this to my friends already I keep getting questions about why I’m selling the RV-4.  I really enjoy the RV-4.  I’ve invested roughly 10 years of my life in that airplane.  So why sell it now that it’s finally done?  Two reasons.

The first and most superficial reason is that my flying mission has changed.  I’d really like to get back into back country flying again and I can’t really do that in my RV-4.  It doesn’t have a whole lot of room for camping equipment, especially if you have two people in the plane.  Plus now that it’s painted I’d really be nervous landing it on a gravel strip.

The second and much less superficial reason is my son.  As many of my friends know my son has Autism.  Due to his language defecits and limited understanding his career paths will be somewhat limited.  One thing he is very good at is understanding drawings.  He also has a great mechanical aptitude.  Add to this that he recently asked me when I’m going to build another airplane.  His question made me think that I could accomplish several goals at once but it would require that I raise the funds needed to build another airplane.

My plan is to sell the RV-4 and buy a new airplane kit.  The front runner right now is a Rans S6ES.  It is simple and quick to build.  My thought is that I could give my son some excellent mechanical skills if he were to help me with the construction of this plane.  We would look at the construction manual together and I would give him a construction task on the plane each day.  He would accomplish the task and I would inspect it.  I would explain any errors to him and have him correct them himself.  This will give him some great skills in interpreting complex drawings and learning some good shop techniques.

Since we home school our children we have to take any opportunity to think outside the box.  Building another plane is just such an example of where several goals can be met at once.  I am hoping it will also help him build some confidence in his own skills and also be a great father – son bonding experience.

So there you have it.  That’s why the RV-4, something I poured my money, blood, sweat, and sometimes bad words into, must go.