First Flight!!

After 8 years of building, I finally took 315HS airborne! I had a local DAR, Stan, do the airworthiness inspection. He was incredibly experienced and had a few suggestions that I will incorporate going forward, primarily with respect to some future maintainability items. Took about 2 hours and he was very thorough, but in the end he signed my certificate.

First I did some taxi tests around the airport and increasingly faster runs on the runway, up to rotate speed. When everything felt comfortable and safe, I took it airborne for the first time. No significant issues other than summer turbulence and stayed in the overhead pattern about 3kft AGL.

I’m using the EAA Flight Test Program (here) which is a very straightforward process. Run card #1 was accomplished and a few days later, I flew Flight #2 to check out flap functionality.

I took today off from flying in order to accomplish a propeller dynamic balance. I rented a kit from Two Wing Aviation and this was a simple process. Highly recommended company and Jared was amazing to work with. He happily answered my dumb questions on a Sunday until everything was done.

Next step is to keep working on those test cards and make my way through Please 1. Overall, it’s great to finally see this plane in the air.

Parachute Install / Weight & Balance

I wasn’t able to get much done over the winter because it was way too cold and snowy to work in my unheated hangar. Apparently we received 141″ of snow this year and average temps in the 20-30F range.

But now that it’s warmed up and the snow has melted, I’ve been back to work on the plane. My Magnum parachute arrived in December and got it installed over a few work sessions. There were a couple of hangups but relatively easy to get everything sorted out. The instructions that came with the kit were very thorough. I’m leaving the actuator disconnected until I’m completely done but that’s an easy step to finish up.

Now that the parachute is installed, I was able to knock out weight and balance. I used some car scales I borrowed from the local EAA chapter down the road. Final empty weight is 1173 lbs and 23% MAC, well within the envelope. However, like everyone else the plane is tail heavy and could get into aft CG issues with certain configurations. Because of this, I have 2x 10lb weights to use as ballast that fit into the foot wells in front of the rudder pedals. With the weights, it’s 1193lb empty weight. They’re removable so I can use them or not, depending on the situation. Running the numbers with the ballast weights, it’s well within CG limits in a max weight situation.

Now that that’s done, I have a couple of loose ends to wrap up and ready for the DAR inspection. I need to finish installing the fairings and tidy up some working up front and I’ll be ready to go.

TSi Transition Training

This month I went out to Torrence, California to receive some transition training and my flight review. Overall, it went very well and I had a great time. The weather in Socal is always great, especially compared to the Fall in the Northeast. Caprice and Erica in the front office were amazing and made sure everything was all set before I went out there.

For my insurance, I needed 2 hours of dual instruction plus I wanted to knock out my flight review. I was scheduled with Garrett who was super professional and a great instructor. We ended up flying 2 sorties for a total of 2.7 hours, knocking out everything I needed.

Back home, I’ve been doing engine runs, making sure everything works. There’s been some necessary tweaks to configurations and settings in my EFIS, but nothing too far off. I’ve been working on odds and ends like fitting fairings and wheel pants. I’ve also been adjusting the control surfaces per the instructions and maintenance manual so they’re in spec.

I’m still waiting for my Magnum parachute to arrive, then I can do my final weight and balance. I’m working on scheduling a DAR for the airworthiness process. I’m not sure if I’ll wrap everything up before the snow starts falling, so the winter weather will ultimately take control over scheduling of my first flight.

Summer 2025 Update

Well it’s starting to look like an actual airplane. Wings are on, prop is on, and everything is getting connected. It took a lot of work to get the wings on and everything torqued down but they’re attached.

I purged the oil system per the Rotax bulletin and connected the fuel lines. When I pressurized the fuel system, there was a small leak coming from the connection at the fuel pressure sensor, so I rebuilt that line and everything is good one I did that.

First engine run was 5 July, started right up without issues. The configuration of the RPM gauge in the EFIS is off, so I’ll need to modify that. I ran the motor for about 10 minutes to get everything up to temperature and had an observer check for leaks, smoke, etc. everything was as expected.

Next step is to finish up the detail work and get all of the documentation in order to start the airworthiness process.

Spring 2025 Update

The big project over this winter was to get the plane painted. I found a local custom car shop who was willing to take the project and it turned out amazing. There were some issues shipping it but we worked those out using a great tow shop. Thanks to Angela and Alex at American Towing for the hard work moving everything.

Now that the plane is at the airport, I’ll have less ad hoc opportunities to work on it. I’m currently working on shuttling tools and parts out there to begin final assembly.

The guys spent months meticulously prepping and painting, along with their usual clients. We just picked it up last week and brought it out to the hangar. Anthony and team at A/R Customs were awesome throughout the whole process, especially considering it was everyone’s first time painting a plane.

Registration is also complete and we’re basically up to engine start once I get things assembled. I’ll post again once we get to that point.

Summer 2024 Update

This year was a busy one. I received my Rotax 915 engine this past Spring and I’ve been working on installing it a bit at a time. Everything was fairly straightforward but it took quite a bit of tracing wiring diagrams. Since I’m using an Advanced Flight Systems EFIS, I had to translate the Sling documentation which calls out a Garmin system. Luckily, the AFS tech support is amazing and has been very helpful. Most of the time was spent waiting for my propeller to arrive to finalize wiring and cowling. I’m going with a AxSport prop which came with an amazing full color controller. That too was simple to install and straightforward. I have a paint shop nearby and just about ready to bring everything over there for paint. Plan is to do the first engine start in the driveway then take it to paint. I’ll spend the winter doing final assembly and hopefully be ready to fly in the spring, weather dependent.

Summer 2023 Update

This year has been incredibly busy with work and life so I haven’t had much opportunity to work on the plane. I did receive my avionics from Advanced Flight Systems and it is awesome. I’ve spent the majority of my limited time connecting wiring to avionics and getting that up and running. I’ve also been working on learning the system and setting up everything to my liking.

I ordered the engine this month as well as the firewall forward and prop. Engine will be the standard Rotax 915, ordered through Custom Aircraft Builders in Binghamton, NY. The prop will be the brand new AxSport high performance constant speed prop, built for the new Rotax 916. Everything should be here over the next few months and I’ll be working to get it installed over the winter. I moved wings to my hangar to make space for the engine. I’ll try to update once the engine comes in with more details on that install.

I also 3d printed a better flow adjuster for the cabin air intake, as well as installed the forward static ports per the updated plans. Once I begin flight testing, I’ll compare the aft and forward static ports since there is debate over which location is more accurate.

Over the next few months, I’ll be working electrical and preparing for the engine install.

Summer 2022 Update

The past few months have been focusing on preparing for my panel to arrive. I’ve been working with the Advanced Flight Systems, Advanced Panel folks to work out instrument locations, specifications, etc. As of this posting, it is 99% designed and ready to cut, powder coat, and build. After a lot of discussions with the AFS team, I have decided on the following suite:

2x AF-6600 EFIS (brand new system)
AV-30 backup
Garmin GPS355 comm/nav
Garmin GMA245 audio
AFS electronic circuit breakers
Battery backups for everything

AFS in Oregon is planning and building everything and will arrive ready to plug and play in a few weeks.

While working on this, I’ve been installing the canopy door latches. It’s not a complicated process, however, it’s a lot of assemble, mark, disassemble. The original kit handles were two different key sets, so I replaced those with a matching set. Both sides are now installed and ready to go.

The next few weeks will be continuing to work with AFS on the panel. Once they are complete and send it, I’ll need to work out location for the remote items, like transponder and ADHRS.

Spring Update

I’ve spent the past few weeks fitting and installing the canopy. I modified a C-clamp to assist dimpling the 10 or so top rivet holes for the countersunk rivets. Before final installation, I painted the canopy the same color as the rest of the interior since it was easier to paint while it was on the floor.

Per the instructions and online Sling videos, my canopy fitment steps were:

Sand the edge to ensure a good fit along the fuselage
Match drill the rivet holes
Dimple and countersink appropriate holes
Remove the canopy and paint the canopy interior
Place the canopy back on the fuselage (on boards)
Score the aluminum skins and clean with Sika Cleaner/Activator
Prime with Sika Primer
Apply Sika-295 sealant
Place the canopy back on the fuselage and cleco in place
Rivet and clean Sika overflow

I also applied a thin (1/4″) strip of Sika-295 along the perimeter for a better, more weather-proof seal.

I’ve also started fitting the wheel pants which only took a couple of hours.

Finally, I signed a lease on a hangar nearby. Once Spring hits, I’ll start moving things like empennage and wings over there to make room for the fuselage to prep for avionics and motor. Avionics have been ordered, but I expect ~6 months for delivery due to component issues. I did go with an IFR Dynon HDX package, built in-house at Advanced Panels. I’ll post more details once that gets closer to arrival.

Next is to attach parachute cables, and finish up interior wiring.

Winter Update

It’s finally starting to warm up here in the Northeast so now I can get back to building. My finishing kit arrived in late December, so I put the canopy on the fuselage for storage and inventoried everything else. There are quite a few parts still on backorder so I’m still limited in what I can work on.

I’ve been working on my panel design by printing out the various widgets and boxes. I also built a 1/3 scale version of the panel to check out switch placement and general flow.

I started fitting the canopy this week, which is mostly a series of fit, move, sand, repeat. I have it set pretty close to final, just a little bit more sanding. Like the rest of my interior, I’ll need to paint the interior canopy so I have to wait for spring for that.

Next is to continue working on canopy fitment then seal that up.