CEO Says Members Of Four EAA Chapters In Florida Consulting

By Paul Plack

LoPresti Speed Merchants Friday announced a unique approach to turning the Fury, which was designed to be a certified, mass-produced airplane, back into a pile of parts for an eager kit market.
 

LoPresti CEO RJ Siegel says the whole kit idea sprang from the discovery that many Vans Aircraft owners are "serial kit builders," and some had specifically requested a Fury as their next kit. He tells ANN the company has enlisted the help of four EAA Chapters in Florida to build one of the planes from scratch, providing tips from those experienced builders along the way on how it could be made more friendly to the homebuilder, who may not have access to a 50-ton hydraulic press or high-end machine equipment.
 
When the prototypes are done, the working group, dubbed, "Fury Squadron," will get one of the first three completed kitplanes for use in a flying club. Siegel says the tail is complete now.

LoPresti expects the kit to come to market in laser-cut, pre-drilled form, requiring about 800 hours to build. Siegel, who has a background with Apple, says instructions are typically a weak point among current kits. The Fury will combine a traditional manual with online assembly videos which cater to visual and kinesthetic learners.
 
The tentative price for the kit is $160,000. Engine choices will be the Lycoming O-360 or -390 running on gasoline, or the DeltaHawk turbo-normalized, supercharged diesel. Look for first shipments in late 2012.

FMI: www.loprestifury.com