Building in France ( to someday return to USA )

Greetings all, been lurking dreaming for a while. Have long entertained the thought of building an RV. Now that I am stuck here in France for a few years, thought I might put the time to good use.

I know there are some here that live here in France( also UK , mainland Europe etc) and I know there are a bunch being built here as well.
just starting to research this all, and make contacts etc.

I have been searching for a bit on the regs for importing etc. but not being that versed in French yet, it's a bit difficult.

Also have issues such as:

What about corrosion while shipping to/fro.

Inspections? / FAA certification / Ferry or shipping container to return ...

and a million others.

Haven't yet flown here , but not really worried about that (would be nice tho) , just to be ready for our return.

Thanks in advance for any advice.

Andy

Watch out everyone, I went to high school with this guy. Oh the stories I could tell......
Seriously though, if you are coming back to the US in a couple years the only building I would do is perhaps the tail kit. Then it would not be such a big deal to ship it back with your other belongings. Anymore would probably be very expensive. Maybe you can hook up with a French builder and help out in order to get some stick time when it is complete. Better yet, when the French builder gets stuck half way through the build, he will probably just throw his hands up in surrender and ask his American friend to finish the job!

Anyway, it would be great to see you again Andy. Good Luck with those French lessons.

hey

Hey Andy,

What's your story? I may have a similar one.

If I had to guess... I would say - semiconductors.
There is not a whole lot of work for US citizens in central Italy. Perhaps Avezzano? Micron? Then to Grenoble France. ST?

Am I right?


I'm in a similar situation. I moved from Colorado to The Netherlands 6 months ago. Aviation here is extremely expensive and I haven't had the time to even try and fly . I also put my project on hold till I return to the US in 2008 . I get to spend a little time everwhere. 1 month in Avezzano, 1 month in Sweden, couple months in Netherlands. Next germany. Then someday: france, Russia.....


Jeff
Colorado --> Netherlands --> ???
RV7(a?)

I MAY be a bit different.. My wife works for Caterpillar.... good you say... well, now that involves taking care of the house and 4 kids!
Born in Central PA, moved to IL with Cat, now here for 3-5 yrs. 2010 I guess at the latest, but that is unknown also.

There is a big ISE (international service employee) presence here, but at least at Cat , no one has much time to build- long days sometimes, but am going to email the pilots on the list and try I suppose.

Bruce.. good idea. thanks for the encouragement.. and remember those stories go both ways.. ( and I was the one who always had the camera).
I had thought about just building the emp. kit here ( might take me that long just for that!) might be what I end up doing.

Had planned on the QB kit, but from what I see, importation is not permitted. Unknown if I could get a waiver since it's returning.. but french laws can be rigid at times.

May also just put the thing on hold and save up more money!

Thanks,
Andy

bsacks05 said:

Better yet, when the French builder gets stuck half way through the build, he will probably just throw his hands up in surrender and ask his American friend to finish the job!

Click to expand...

you're bad!


careful, trying to make friends here ... actually there are some very friendly people here.( must be the mountain air) have been invited over for dinners, kids invited over etc.

some do have a issue with following the queue sometimes. the driving seems a bit 'fast' until you go to Italy, and then the French don't seem so bad... LOL... at least they don't ride slow in the fast lane all day.

From what I read" English is the lanquage of aviation, except in France"
all the local position reports are in french around here anyway... and YES it is expensive. about 185 USD for a C172, but most are the Robins here for a bit less. Unsure about landing fees here in the area.

Thanks..
Andy

Andy,
When you get home, give me a call. I've imported several RVs. It's not a big deal. Just a simple airworthiness inspection. May or may not need a flight test time. It depends on how much total time is on the airplane.

RVs in France

Hi, I live in southern France near to Toulon and know a little bit about flying and building RVs in France. I have a 6A which I started building in France then finished in the US before bringing it back here.

We have a RV fly in at Nuit St George in June (1st 2nd and 3rd ) which is near to Dijon and not too far from Grenoble. At the 2006 RV fly in which was at La Baule about 50 RVs turned up from various countries in Europe

Here are a couple of French web sites you can look at that give you an idea of where the RVs are based in France.

http://www.vansclubdefrance.org/

http://jccrv6.free.fr/

You can import a ?quick build? RV into France however you would not be able to register it here.

The only issue you will have is having to pay transport charges from the US to France plus you will be asked to pay VAT which is 19.6% tax. It may be possible to claim this back when you leave the country with the airplane.

Barry RV6A F-PRVM

Thanks for the replys.

Excellent - Not really worried about registering in France. ( if by some miracle if I finish by then ) and yes one of the biggest problems I had was the VAT.


Cool .. thanks for the links... I see there are quite a few more RV's here than I thought!

Barry said:

know a little bit about flying and building RVs in France. I have a 6A which I started building in France then finished in the US before bringing it back here.

Click to expand...

I quess you do! I read the story of your trip a while ago..
very inspiring! thanks for your advice.

Andy

Welcome to the old world!

Hi Andy,

Remember that you are in Metric-world now. Almost everything you'll need for your project has to be shipped in from the US. The one thing you want to do when building in Europe is having a "grocery-list"of all small stuff you'll need and order it as much together as possible (this applies especially for tools and all the small components you'll need for the finishing/firewall forward/wiring stage). The shipping costs are terrible so combine as much as possible! Besides that building in the old world is just as much fun!
Furthermore there is one advantage of living here (besides the food of course): you can pick up the best propellor in the world by yourself in Germany

If you happen to be in the Netherlands, drop by!

Living in France for a while - I'm jealous. I spent a very enjoyable year flying in France back in the late 80's. Great people, wonderful food and wine, etc. You do need to come to grips with a different approach to just about everything, but it is useful to see that there are other ways to do things.

Soaring and aerobatics are both quite popular in France, with clubs all over the country. Be sure to get a flight in a CAP 10 before you come back - very nice handling aerobatic tail dragger. A soaring flight in the Alps is also a must-do.

The beaches aren't bad either.

Ren? .. thanks! Good advice! Will do.. Would love to see what is going on up there.

Kevin,
I have the glider thing set up as soon as I can hook up with a guy in Belgium, and they have a CAP-10 at one of the clubs here. Must look into that.


mmmm yes the beaches... ouch... yes sorry dear...

regards,

Andy

Flying in France

Andy - if you are serious about connecting up with the French RV folk there is a link to their club here.

However, you are living on the edge of some of the very best gliding in the world. If I was living there power flying would be a minor part of my aviation activity. Good clubs at Gap or Sisteron and others. You need to be the other side of the pass for the really good conditions. I remember comitting to hold for an hour at 16000' while a French airforce exercise happened below us.

You could enrole at the French Mountain Soaring Centre at St Auban. (Maybe even fit a bit of work in on the few bad weather days.)

Either way, power or gliding, join a club. It will be much cheaper. The folk at the altiport at Meribel are a nice bunch. You will find a picture of my Supercub parked there on my blog.

French Builder Here

Hi Andy,

I live in the opposite side of France, almost the same latitude, but right on the Atlantic Ocean, and I'm just starting my RV-9A building project.

There are a (relatively) lot of RV builders in France, and most of them are very enthusiast people willing to share their experience. You may easily locate some them in this map http://jccrv6.free.fr/index_fichiers/Page627.htm

FYI, as an FAA licensed pilot, you are able to (quick)build your RV here in France under the FAA-Experimental rules, and have it registered with a November number. There are FAA representatives in France who can perform the required inspections as well.
That way, you can bring your RV in the USA the best manner you can imagine: Flying it!!!

I spent some years working in your country, and still go there on occasion, so my English may be quite acceptable for your ears: give me a call if you want to visit the south west area of France. Food is good here too, our sand beaches are wonderful and not crowded as in the Riviera, and you'll find lots of airfields around.

Cheers, and welcome to this country that you'll eventually love (or hate)
My cell phone is: +33 (0)613-971-594

Another one

Hi Andy,

if you ever travel to the vicinity of Paris, there are a few builders around here.
I'm to the east of Paris, between the city and Disneyland (you drop of your kids and you have RV time)
Feel free to call and discuss all this.
Pascal

Thanks to all! Merci ? tous ! en dank u Ren? !

must get out of the house and visit you all. (hard sometimes with the kids etc.- disneyland.. hmmmm)

It IS a love/hate relationship at times

I do enjoy the scenery here and the food - magnifique! ( I can even stand to drink a bottle of wine now and then ) must take advantage while I am here. french coming ok, just need to practice more..

Looks like I have my work cut out for me.....

Thanks again!

Andy