Sonex legacy floor

[Skippydiesel]

Good space for remote mount radios, agars, etc. it’s not easy to get in to in the sense of baggage storage.

Thanks for this.

I take it the space is not readily accessible ?

Could it be made/modified to be more accessible ?

My current aircraft (ATEC Zephyr) has a handy space below each seat, not access able during flight, that I can use for all those little things that might be required eg aircraft tie down bag, first aid kit, etc

[Bryan Cotton]

Would be bad from a crashworthiness perspective.

Care to expand/elaborate.

The space under the seat acts as a crush zone for a high vertical impact. When you put stuff under there, you lose the crush zone.

[pappas]

The area under the sling seat may act as a "crush zone", I don't know. However, Sonex decided to go with a more conventional seat design on the B model. So, I would assume that they factored that into the new design if it was a consideration for the legacy. I tend to think that the sling design was more likely a compromise to simplicity and weight savings than a crashworthy item.

I fabricated access panels, secured by screws and nutplates, into my B model seat pan to give me access to the remote radio, transponder, A/P servo's and trim motors which fit nicely under the seat and only get looked at during maintenance or conditionals. I am much happier with the new seat design than I was with the sling.

There is certainly room under the seat for a travel tool kit, but it would be easier just to sew up a baggage sling behind the seat and keep it in there. The seats are always a bit of a pain to remove.

[Skippydiesel]

The area under the sling seat may act as a "crush zone", I don't know. However, Sonex decided to go with a more conventional seat design on the B model. So, I would assume that they factored that into the new design if it was a consideration for the legacy. I tend to think that the sling design was more likely a compromise to simplicity and weight savings than a crashworthy item.

I fabricated access panels, secured by screws and nutplates, into my B model seat pan to give me access to the remote radio, transponder, A/P servo's and trim motors which fit nicely under the seat and only get looked at during maintenance or conditionals. I am much happier with the new seat design than I was with the sling.

There is certainly room under the seat for a travel tool kit, but it would be easier just to sew up a baggage sling behind the seat and keep it in there. The seats are always a bit of a pain to remove.

Great response - I will look closely at this area in my my new Sonex. Having a space that is very close, if not right on the C of G, that can be utilised for locating remote electronics, infrequently used supplies, etc. is very handy. The aircraft I am getting is a Legacy model but has already incorporated many B model improvements. The seat base is a sheet of aluminium (nor sling type) and already has a luggage bag fitted behind the seats (behind the C of G)

[n502pd]

Yet another chime in for me this am! I too had the seat pan start tearing , from my non standard size and weight. Ingress is designed to stand in the seat pan, and over a short time, the pan began to tear near the seatbelt entrance too. i fabricated 1x1x1/8 angle aluminum left over fron the build, and ran two supports for pic and pax seats from the spar box to the centerline of the rear,lower hinge. this solved the problem of breakikng the seatpan, added butt support while seated, with a much better ability to actually stand in the seat for ingress and egress. I have had no further deterioration of the seat pan in over 50 hrs.

[Skippydiesel]

I have found my Sonex to be disappointingly short on storage space.

I now plan to cut two, slightly rectangular holes, in my seat base and have a hinged flap on each.

The space below will have to be modified, using thin plywood walls, so as to prevent items from interfering with the flight control system.

This space will hold my infrequently used, always carried, items eg tool kit, jack & tyre repair, first aid kit, etc

On long trips, I carry two collapsible 20L fuel bladders & a Mr Funnel - they will find a home in a purpose built, removable tailored box in the right footwell.