On October 26, 1993, at the age of 13, I took my first flight, and I’ve been hooked ever since. As an avid tinkerer, and busy body, in 2001, I decided to fulfill my dream of building an aircraft, and had a contract in hand to buy a Velocity build. Unfortunately, 9/11 changed the course of that plan for quite some time. In 2006 I became a full time flight instructor for 3 years and really got comfortable flying all sorts of aircraft from the tiny Citabria 7ECA to the King Air B200s. I’ve enjoyed teaching Tailwheel, primary, and aerobatic students part time since 2010 when I got back to the real world as an Engineering Executive.
Fast forward 27 years from my first flight, and almost 20 years since I first took a serious step towards building an airplane, and I’ve finally decided to take the plunge. The RV-8 combines all the things I love about aviation (tailwheel, acro, sitting on the centerline, fast, affordable), as well as the right level of build complexity (primarily metal work) that will allow my two boys (Nico – 10 & Jack – 13) to help out.
Through this blog I hope to share the journey with all of those that are interested. Happy reading, and may you enjoy the read as much as I have enjoyed the blogging!
– Paolo