Xenos flight characteristics

[KWK]

Sonex pilots report the airplane isn't the most stable and isn't flown hands off, at least not for long.

How's the Xenos in that regard? Can you let go to look at a paper map, fiddle with your headsets, or the like?

How's the control harmony? A friend with a Sonex says it's stiffer in roll than pitch (many sport planes are so), and I'll guess the long wing Xenos is more so.

[KWK]

I did some searching and found two articles circa 2004, the time of the original flight tests on the Xenos. One is in the development log on the factory site. The other is on the site of Kitplanes magazine.

It certainly sounds as if it's much tamer than the Sonex. I'm tall, so I'll seek a B model Sonex to see if I might fit. If nothing else, the factory isn't all that far.

[bvolcko38]

The Xenos is like the Sonex, you have to fly it. It’s lighter in pitch than in roll. With a 45’ wingspan, of course it’s going to roll slower than the Sonex.

[KWK]

Well, nuts. I was hoping the short wing Xenos would be a placid LSA. The glider feature wasn't the selling point to me, but that big, efficient wing sure was. I'd wondered if this quote from the old Kitplanes review was typical:

I let the Xenos fly itself hands-off for a while. The air was still quite bumpy, and I was impressed by its stability. We felt the bumps, the airplane went up and down with the air, but the nose stayed pointed where I wanted it. No wandering, wobbling or tail wagging.

The press for kit airplanes back then was still on the optimistic side, and apparently in this case as well. Thanks for replying, Bill.

[Scott Todd]

I see SO many people buy airplanes without a place to put them. I know they advertise the wings come off but think about that. The hangars at my local airport are 40 and 42 feet wide. A Xenos wont fit in most standard airport T or normal Box hangars. You need a large one.

[KWK]

Fair enough, but I had checked the local tee hangars. They are 41'3" and wider at both airports, and, again, the Xenos I had in mind was 39'4" in span.

[XenosN42]

I see SO many people buy airplanes without a place to put them. I know they advertise the wings come off but think about that. The hangars at my local airport are 40 and 42 feet wide. A Xenos wont fit in most standard airport T or normal Box hangars. You need a large one.

I owned a Xenos for about 7 years. Kept it in a 40 foot hanger. The wing tips are quickly & easily removable. Once the tips are off it fit.

I do agree with you that removing the entire wing after each flight is totally impractical.

[KWK]

I was thinking of building a Xenos with only the short tips. My goal was to have something like an aluminum Taylor Cub, where a big wing allows a little engine to carry two people at modest speed. However, I prefer an airplane with hands-off stability, which perhaps is not in the Sonex playbook.

[KWK]

I was able to contact a former Xenos owner, one who no longer posts here. His comments:

It is a stable airplane, but doesn't fly hands-off like a Cessna. It is more sensitive to pitch than roll, and therefore it is usually pitch that deviates more readily. I've flown many other airplanes (over 2000 hours) since trading the Xenos, and I still miss it.

This matches Bill Volcko's description. Both these owners had many more hours in the Xenos than did the pilot in that early Kitplanes article, so I think I have my answer.

Next time I'm in Oshkosh, I'll have for grins a sit in a B model cockpit, but I'm about 90% certain I won't fit, so my question is likely academic.