Sonex Year in Review- 2014

[sonexpilot]

Sonex Aircraft is again extremely pleased to report to our customers, friends, and family that Sonex Aircraft had another successful year in 2014, our 16th year of operations. 2014 was significant to all of us at Sonex as we saw two major Research and Development programs that we have worked on for years transition to available products.

Sonex continue to aggressively invest in our facilities, equipment, and procedures to improve efficiency and consistency for the growing and diverse volume of customers we serve. We completed and moved into a 3,600 square foot warehouse expansion that houses SubSonex Jets along with an expanded crating shop and plentiful shelving storage. This new addition has increased the production and packaging capacity of Sonex Aircraft which will allow us to grow to meet current and future demand. We are also working hard on a new web site and web store, which will be launched in 2015 along with additional sales staff in an effort to improve communication with all of our customers and dealers worldwide.

Now for an exciting summary of 2014:
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Sonex Builder Achievements:

35 reported Sonex, Waiex and Xenos Customer First Flights during this calendar Year including:
19 Sonex, 6 Waiex, 8 Onex, and 2 Xenos. Congratulations to all on this fantastic achievement!
As of this writing, Sonex Aircraft Completions now total over 500 with several more first flights being reported every month!

New Sonex Pilot Adventures were added to the flying stories web page on the Sonex web site and we've also read many great stories on these e-mail lists through the year and on pilot's own web sites:
http://www.sonexaircraft.com/press/flyingstories.html

Sonex decided in 2014 to end our company-sponsored and E-groups in favor of SonexBuilders.net, a modern forum platform that is peer-moderated by the Sonex Builders and Pilots Foundation (http://sonexfoundation.com/). Sonex is very pleased with this partnership and expects it to continue to grow as more Sonex builders and pilots discover the wealth of information and resources available from this outstanding community.
Sonex has maintained our very successful "Opt-In" Mailing Lists that send the latest news right to you e-mail inbox and we still encourage anyone interested in receiving the latest Sonex Company news to subscribe to these lists:
http://www.sonexaircraft.com/rss_info.html

Sonex Builder Gatherings were again held this year across the United States and around the world. These annual grass-roots gatherings reported strong attendance and interest in Sonex products. Thank you for spreading the good word about Sonex and AeroConversions products through these events!
We invite all Sonex builders, pilots, and organizations planning a Sonex gathering to send it to us so we can add your organization and/or Event to our Builder’s Events Calendar...which will be updated soon for 2015!
http://www.sonexaircraft.com/builders/b ... vents.html
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Sonex Company News for 2014:

SubSonex model JSX-2 flew for the first time in July followed by many more flights to confirm and verify flight performance and handling characteristics. These flights represented the culmination of thousands of hours of development work in the first and second generations of the SubSonex. The team could not have been more pleased with the success of this flight program. We are on track to deliver the first Subsonex customer aircraft in the coming weeks, with production capacity to meet demand for years to come. Orders for the next batch of production are currently being accepted: http://www.sonexaircraft.com/subsonex/index.html

The AeroVee Turbo was released as an available product, and the first batches of AeroVee Turbo kits shipped to customers late this year. Sonex was extremely pleased to see the large number of conversion packages shipped all over the world to those seeking to increase the power of their AeroVee powerplants. We believe this Turbo option will continue to be popular and make the AeroVee a viable engine alternative for an even larger family of aircraft. Learn all about it by watching the EAA Webinar Archive:
http://www.eaavideo.org/video.aspx?v=3867050538001

Another large group of pilots also took advantage of the new T-Flight Transition Training Program that Sonex began offering in May of 2013. We are extremely proud that in two short flying seasons here in Oshkosh, we have now flown with over 100 Pilots!
The Sonex T-Flight program offers everything from a 1/2 Hour Basic Familiarization to multi-hour dual instruction packages. T-Flight Transition Training is available for 6 different factory aircraft including 4 Sonex Aircraft, a Waiex, and a Xenos. FMI:
http://www.sonexaircraft.com/support/t-flight.html

Xenos and Sonex/Aerovee Turbo Flight Tour videos were posted to the Sonex Web Site with more planned for 2015!
Xenos Tour: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OWgq_u_KHKY
Sonex/AeroVee Turbo Tour: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AG3AmNn5CtY

Sonex held its successful 56th, 57th, and 58th Builder Workshops in 2014.
These well-attended weekend workshops continue to evolve as we pack more and
more Sonex information into them. The schedule for 2015 includes 3 more
Workshops in March, June, and October. All workshops include the very
popular $1000 discount on the kit when both the machined angle and assembled
spar options for the Sonex, Waiex, Xenos, or Onex are purchased:
http://www.sonexaircraft.com/support/workshops.html

Sonex participated in 4 Fly-Ins and Events in 2014. Along with our “home show” of AirVenture Oshkosh, Sonex also sent representatives to the Sebring Air Show in January, participated in the Sun N Fun Fly-In in April, and had the SubSonex on display as part of Vertigo AirShow’s display at ICAS 2014 in Las Vegas! We again held a series of presentations and hosted a meet-and-greet with builders. We are returning to both Sebring and Sun N Fun with booths and company aircraft in 2015! Our special thanks goes to all the Sonex pilots who flew their aircraft to these Fly-Ins and proudly displayed them!

On the heals of the addition of approximately 115 new pre-fabricated parts to the Sonex and Waiex kit models in 2012, new popular Quick Build Kits for Sonex, Waiex, and Onex in 2013, we continued to improve all kit offerings with new additions in 2014 including wing ribs cut with pilot holes and to final profiles. In addition to offering the Turbo as an option for the AeroVee, we also upgraded other parts in the AeroVee package including Made with Pride in the USA-Heads, the newest upgraded magnesium crankcases, silicone intake manifold seals, stainless steel push-rod tubes, and chrome cooling tin. A new "permanent" sump oil filter and mount was also made available as an option on both Turbo and normally-aspirated AeroVee packages.

Two webinars were presented by Sonex Founder and President John Monnett featuring his aviation airframe and engine history. We believe these will be valuable reference materials for the Sonex Community for many years to come:
1. History of Monnett Aircraft Designs presented on September 11th:
Watch it now: http://www.eaavideo.org/video.aspx?v=3779881027001
2. SuperVee to AeroVee Engine History presented on March 20th:
Watch it now: http://www.eaavideo.org/video.aspx?v=3367045529001

On industry and community support, Sonex continued our strong support of the new Aircraft Kit Industry Association (AKIA). AKIA's mission continues to be to represent aircraft kit manufacturers, designers, suppliers and supporters with a unified voice in promoting and advocating for all who enjoy building and flying their own aircraft. AKIA was pleased to support the One Week Wonder at AirVenture 2014 and looks forward to supporting more Aircraft construction activities at AirVenture 2015. Company CEO Jeremy Monnett was elected president of AKIA in July. He also continues his service on the EAA’s Safety Committee. Sonex Aircraft also hosted 3 more classes of the DOT Experimental/Amateur-Built Accident Investigation Course for members of the FAA, NTSB and DOT.
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A heartfelt “Thank You!” to everyone who has contributed to making Sonex a
success in 2014!

We’re all excited for the great things 2015 has in store. As always, keep
your eye on the Sonex Aircraft web site for the latest first flight reports,
new product announcements, and all other grass-roots Sonex news....and keep
your own success stories coming! We love 'em!

We wish you all the best for a safe and prosperous 2015.

Regards,
-Sonex Aircraft, LLC
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www.sonexaircraft.com
Tel (Info/Orders): 920.231.8297
Tel (Tech Line): 920.230.8324
Fax: 920.426.8333

Sonex Aircraft, LLC's Mission is to provide the recreational aviation
community innovative, cost-effective and efficient aircraft kits,
powerplants, and accessories and support them with industry-leading customer
service.

In addition, Sonex provides leadership to the grass-roots homebuilt
community to protect the experimental-amateur built rules and cultivates new
pilots and airplane builders through educational efforts.

Web Store: http://www.sonexaircraft.com/eshop/

Please use the following e-mails to Contact Sonex Aircraft:
Sales Info: sales@sonexaircraft.com
Orders: orders@sonexaircraft.com
Accounting: accounting@sonexaircraft.com
Tech Support: tech@sonexaircraft.com