I want one!

[Ironflight]

Boy - if I could only scrape together the necessary money, the Subsonex sure would fit nicely in the hangar......



I am so far behind in getting things posted - but the events of the past week have had me sitting at my desk and going over memories of Jeremy and the chance that he gave me to fly the little jet back in April. I realized that i had never posted anything here about the experience, and I won't take much space, as you will be able to read about the jet, the training, and the overall program in the August issue of Kitplanes Magazine. Suffice to say, the grin I had in this picture (taken right after my first flight, as I was debriefed by Bob Carlton) should tell you that I enjoyed it!

The little Subsonex is a remarkable airplane - it performs well, is just about as simple as it can be, and most of all - it is honest. With a reasonably low stall speed and a slab wing, it doesn't seem to have any bad habits lurking in the deep recesses of its soul, waiting to bite you. The construction is pure and basic Sonex - and firewall forward (or is that upward?) installation should take about fifteen minutes. While the price might sound high to someone who has come to the Sonex world for airplanes that can be built for the price of a modern car, the truth is that people spend way more than this on many homebuilts from other companies today.

I know a lot of former military guys wanting to relive their glory days as fighter pilots one last time, with pension money burning a hole in their pocket. To them I simply say - look at the range numbers, then pick out how many places there are to fly for lunch within, say 300 miles (plmnty of reserve beyond that). No think about how cool it would be to be the guy who showed up for the group lunch in his own personal single seat jet - for the hundred dollar burger. I don't think youhave to say much more than that..... :mrgreen:

Paul

[SonexN76ET]

I am hoping to one day build a SubSonex too! That has got to be the absolute biggest bang for the buck when it comes to jets. Previously the only somewhat affordable jets were BD-5J's and old warbird jet trainers. The SubSonex will surely be much safer to fly than a BD-5J and only a fraction of the cost to operate than other jets. With a range of 300+ miles, that is probably better than a MiG-15 and close to an F-86. I enjoy landing at new airports and do not mind a 300 mile range. It helps break up a long cross country. But the real thrill will simply be zooming through the air to the smooth whistle of a jet.

Jake