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Xenos #0052 departed runway 34 @ KAWO at approximatly 1100 hours on 1 June 2021. First Flight was smooth. I was super pleased with the handling and smoothness of the controls. I am really excited about the effectiveness of the Spoilers, I will never have a problem with getting back down on strong lift days. Decided to cut the first flight a little short due to some engine overheating that encouraged me to limit that first outing to 3500' and only 40 minutes of airtime. Got a little fuel adjustment to make yet. All in all, well worth the wait and effort expended in the build.

The engine was originally a Great Plains 2180 cc that had one hour on it and had been used as a spare for the "A Nation Soars" film depicting a 1917 air battle involving the Canadian RAF in France. I had Hummel aviation in Arizona evaluate it and configure it for my Xenos. Final weight with Magneto, starter, generator, radio, transponder, ELT, ADSB in/out, and partial paint: 830lbs. A little heavier than expected but worth every lb.

I purchase the project with the fuselage partially completed in June of 2018 and began construction in earnest in January of 2019. Worked fairly steadilly except for 3 months each Winter to thaw out in Southern California. Received my Airworthiness Cert in Sept of 2020, but still had to complete the trailer and a lot of little finishing touches. Then of course comes taxi testing, getting in the right frame of mind to believe in your self and the machine you have built, and then choosing the right day. Good visibility, light winds, low traffic, no rain in forecast, no TFR's, and most important of all, a good friend to help you keep your head on straight and pay attention to detail.

My thanks to the Sonex support team, all the feedback from other builders out there, and my good friend Mike who helped keep me engaged during the project.

Awesome! Well done!

Congrats! Pictures or it didn't happen ;)

Pictures? Oh, that is kind of harsh. Well, I was kind of busy you see. I will have to check with my friend Mike to see if he took more than a bon voyage shot. Mike never heard me call in my approach since I apparently partially disconnected my mike jack when I secured the second set of seat belts. The ptt broke squelch but no Xmit. lesson learned.

We don't actually need pictures of the flight. We NEED pictures of the completed airplane! Us true Sonex Nerds can't get enough photos :)

Hi, friend Mike here. Yes, Tom did actually make his first flight in N562RL on 6/1/21.

He did a great job on the build, just as he did on his first, a Cumulus motorglider.

Tom, is a good guy, a great builder and treasured friend.