One of
the most pivotal aircraft in any SportPlane company's line-up is
the first one completed by a customer. For Skystar's highly
regarded Kitfox Series 7, this milestone came Monday. Mind you,
like most SportPlane designs, there is a lag between product
introduction and first flight of a customer-built airplane.
Usually; it's a pretty long one. SkyStar's Kitfox Series 7 should
have been no exception to this rule. But... less than one year
after delivery of the Kitfox Series 7 started, Mr. Terry Black, of
Caldwell, Idaho, completed the first flight of his Rotax 912S
powered Series 7.
According to Mr. Black, "We had the FAA inspection done before
the weekend and had planned to get the first flight done by Sunday,
but the weather intervened. I just waited until all conditions were
right and took off at about 1:00 P.M. Monday afternoon. What a
thrill!"
Let's see, SkyStar is in Caldwell, Idaho and Terry is from
Boise, Idaho. Is there a connection? According to Ed Downs,
President of SkyStar Aircraft Corporation, "You bet, and we are
proud of that connection. It was just over a year ago that SkyStar
joined up with EAA Chapter 103 in what is probably the largest
single chapter project in EAA history." As ANN readers might
recall, EAA Chapter 103 put up the bucks to build 14 Kitfox Series
6 airplanes, and SkyStar kicked in almost $170,000 worth of
discounts to make the deal possible.
Downs continued, "Chapter 103 has been going like gangbusters
ever since we started delivering parts. We updated all of their
planes to the new Series 7 configuration, which slowed things
down a bit, but Terry just kept moving forward. This club really
knows how to get a project done."
Terry Black, a Registered Nurse by profession, had never been
involved in a project of this kind before. Portions of his assembly
were completed using prototype documentation and more than a few
visits to SkyStar to look over their prototype airplanes. But
everything came together as Terry's very pretty Kitfox (N701TB)
took flight in what Terry called "one of the greatest thrills of my
life. My Kitfox flew great. Now come the fine adjustments and
satisfaction of running a really good test program."
ANN Note: The Series 7 is easily the most
mature and accomplished design to come out of the SkyStar
skunkworks. One of the finest SportPlanes of the current
generation, we were very impressed with the aircraft's stability
and control (darned near as stable as a 182...), excellent manners
and playfully enjoyable persona. Particularly impressive, is that a
"full-boat" Series 7, when equipped with the turbocharged Rotax
914, is capable of 130-150 mph cruise speeds and operating at
altitudes that would normally require supplemental oxygen. The best
part of this is that the series 7 does all this and still remains
true to its genteel roots... it's still easy to fly, fun to fly and
cheap top operate (and yes, the wings still fold). We think that
the Kitfox Series 7 is easily one of the best values in the
SportPlane industry today. Period. --Jim Campbell, ANN E-I-C