WHY BUILD AN AIRPLANE?

Why build an airplane? Well, there are quite a few reasons. Some that immediately come to mind are:
 

1. Cost	If you discount labour, a homebuilt aircraft will cost far less than an equivalent brand-new commercial one, and probably even a used commercial one. There is no way I could afford a commercially produced aircraft even remotely like I desire. And a secondhand old C150 doesn't have much appeal when compared next to an aircraft that can cruise at 180kts (erm, I was thinking of the Mustang-II here!), is fully aerobatic, has great control harmony, offers fantastic views from it's bubble-type canopy and on top of everything else is one sexy-looking machine!
2. Performance	Many homebuilts exhibit extremely high performance, again at relatively low cost. And some designs simply have no commercial counterpart; the Lancair IV-P and Viperjet for example. For sure, these are still expensive aircraft and way out of my price range - but if you had the money and wanted a plane like one of these, building would be your only option.
3. Age	How many people can afford a brand-new commercial aircraft anyway? I simply cannot believe the price for a new Cessna Skyhawk! But any aircraft you build yourself is (eventually!) going to be a new one.
4. Customisation	You can build your aircraft exactly how you want it, to suit YOU and your needs. You can do your own interior design, decide on you own paint-scheme, choose your own instruments, avionics, flight controls etc... If you are extra tall or extra small you can modify the seating and pedals to accommodate. You can build YOUR plane.
5. Maintenance	If you build your own plane under the Experimental category, you can do your own servicing and maintenance. Much cheaper!
6. Enjoyment	Building things is fun!
7. Satisfaction	I can only begin to imagine the sense of achievement and satisfaction that must result from the building and flying of your own aircraft. I can't wait to know it for myself, firsthand.

Of course building is not for everyone, and there are many partly built kits and unfinished projects for sale by disillusioned builders out there. Including my own Mustang-II project!!

The video from Van's Aircraft puts it nicely - that depending on your perspective you either get to build it, or you have to build it, before you can fly it. Even though I enjoy building things, I am sure there are going to be some very frustrating periods where it feels like it's going on forever and I'm getting nowhere.

But perseverance pays off and eventually I will be airborne and carving up the sky, traversing the straight to the mainland and further, visiting wonderful places and seeing wonderful things...