What's new
Van's Air Force

Don't miss anything! Register now for full access to the definitive RV support community.

Naming

Additional thoughts from my Sicilian friend

She read through the comments and took a break from her travel adventures for these added thoughts. I think she really does believe in naming airplanes.

I think giving a name is a kind of "baptism"...your "inanimate" object can become "alive" with a name, be part of your life as anybody else you know, as a friend or a sibling... It doesn't matter if you love it more or less then your family or your friends or your dog... You are just admitting it in your world.
 
Cousin RV and mine have the same BK at the end of N-number. He calls himself "Good Bravo Kilo" it's easy to guess how he calls me. But I heard that ATC called him Big Whopper :D
 
not too far off topic...

I recently bought a restored 1978 honda Civic...Car is awesome...long story short, I found a website that the restorer(flown west now I believe) used to document his work. Found out that he named her Ruby( totally fitting-little red car) and my family all agreed that that was her name. I even had some stickers made in her name and put them on 3 sides of the car....now when we go anywhere, the kids ask if we're taking Ruby...works for me

https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/Beoam81TRv7kA-ZSp_hT3vxJ94_sGOX8rkrEmWJnnW4?feat=directlink

Beoam81TRv7kA-ZSp_hT3vxJ94_sGOX8rkrEmWJnnW4
 
Last edited:
Rhino889 said:
"Naughty Angel"

13AF5BC1-DD48-4E36-9ACC-7FB0BA892A59-6896-00000520C15C3760_zpsa7500d07.jpg


This is a sample fit. I actually went 6inches larger in Diameter for the final.

A1E011C9-CC06-4007-B5A1-525E3A47399A-6896-000005209E6A4C00_zps5893b559.jpg


Wife complained about the plane sometimes. I had my graphic designer create this off a couple of photos of my wife. Now she has to like the plane ;)

Jedi mind trick: success!
Click to expand...

Does she have any sisters? :)
 
Paul Tuttle said:
I call my Harley "the bike". I guess I call my -8 "the airplane"
Click to expand...

Now that sounds familiar; my twin brother is a motorcycle gearhead with three scooters in his garage and a similar naming scheme. He calls them YZF, FJR, BMW... when I was riding I called my CBR 600 "the bike" and my RV-8 is either "the RV" or "the plane". I guess neither one of us are into the whole naming thing...
 
Here's a few ideas for names I haven't seen yet..
Single names:
Ariel
Dawn (as in launch)
Cloudia
Faith
Hope
Destiny
Skye
Wanda
Ethel (ethyl)
Candy (like eye)

If you need two names:
Meagan Waves
Lois Better (Bidder?)
Phylis Up
Terry Air
Constance Peed


RV-10:

Carrie
People Holler (what it does, and what others do when we fly by)

Guess you'll have to imagine your own nose art. No, I haven't come up with one for my -10 project yet, although I kinda like Natasha, as in Badinoff.

==dave==
 
Always had a hard time putting a name to my machines. The RV-6
was simply "the 6", now the RV-8A is "the plane". That doesn't mean
I haven't tried. Just never been happy with the ideas that came up.
Not like a call sign, someone usually gives you that, and it doesn't matter
whether you like it or not.
 
Interesting...

Given that flying has inherited so many traditions and names from the sea, (ship, Captain, etc.) I think it's interesting that while there are countless volumes of Ship & Boat names, in aviation naming is still mostly the exception. I was forced to sell my -8 project a few years ago, but if and when I ever acquire a plane suitable for naming, it will happen. If a name doesn't appear to you or appeal to you, then it's not your thing. Names, like stars, however can align and form shapes and entities before your eyes and there's nothing you can do about it. Either you see a mass of stars at night, or you see constellations and animals.
Clay Cook
 
Do you......

Given that flying has inherited so many traditions and names from the sea, (ship, Captain, etc.) I think it's interesting that while there are countless volumes of Ship & Boat names, in aviation naming is still mostly the exception. I was forced to sell my -8 project a few years ago, but if and when I ever acquire a plane suitable for naming, it will happen. If a name doesn't appear to you or appeal to you, then it's not your thing. Names, like stars, however can align and form shapes and entities before your eyes and there's nothing you can do about it. Either you see a mass of stars at night, or you see constellations and animals.
Clay Cook


......drink Bilge water too?:D
 
Names

I agree with her completely. Had to go with Crazy Woman for my -8. There is novel that could be written to explain!!!! I should have checked my words I ment Biography!!!!! English scholar I am not.



N184RM RV-8 flight test soon
N97629 Stinson 108 Flying
VAF dues gladly paid
 
Last edited:
Jeff A said:
Funny, everytime I tell a guy I built an airplane they ask how fast it goes. Every girl asks what I named it.
Click to expand...

I get precisely the same reactions.

I've been mulling over names since I got the plane in 2015. Nothing really perfect has jumped out at me.

My girl's first name is Rosanne, and I'd like to include that somehow.

First thought was "Ramblin' Rose" because the plane takes me everywhere - and quickly. But the character in the lyrics isn't, shall we say, loyal ;) And this plane is very loyal.

I also like:

"Pistolero"
"Red Hot Rose"
"Racy Rose"

I kind of like "Happy Gregg's Go Buggy" (after "Happy Jack's Go Buggy") because of the alliteration. But it's a little long.

But nothing really stands out. I'll know when I hear it.
 
My -9's named Aurora Australis, the scientific name for the Southern lights which I've always thought are pretty cool. Of course, it helps that Van's is based in Aurora and I'm in Australia, too! :D
 
For the past two years that I have been spending in the shop, my wife is always saying "Going to spend the evening with your mistress?"

"The Mistress" will be across the cowling of my 6A.
 
I was thinking about all the things that you end up knowing after building a plane and came up with:

Aluminatti

The there's a racey twist on that name:

Aluminaughty

Cheers!
 
Haha! I love it!

The RV's in my life all have names. Sarahndipity, Mojo (a good friend's RV-6A) and of course Tony Boy. Ships are named because when you depend on a machine to carry you safely over an environment of certain death, you develop a relationship with it. You feed them and care for them and pay close attention to them when things don't feel right. I think airplanes are exactly the same, and when you build one yourself, a name means even more.

We named a bunch of our production airplanes because, frankly, when you have so many in the shop in various stages of completion, it was more fun to refer to them as a name than a number. One of my favorites was Dorothy, the Jabiru that was tossed onto its back during the SNF tornado. I named her that on Facebook when she flew again after repairs. Then there is Captain America. It was supposed to be a joke because of its homely blue and red stripes, but the name stuck. It went to a flight school in southern IL and became a popular trainer. It makes me happy to walk into the pilot's lounge and see the many first-solo shirt tails pinned to the wall with "Captain America" written on them. :D

Thanks for bringing up this old thread, it's a good one!
 
Midway through the fuselage my wife named my 9A "Esmeralda." When I asked her about the origin for that name, she said "Because it sounds kinda slutty and you spend all your time with her."

Esmeralda it is...
 
airguy said:
Midway through the fuselage my wife named my 9A "Esmeralda." When I asked her about the origin for that name, she said "Because it sounds kinda slutty and you spend all your time with her."

Esmeralda it is...
Click to expand...
My airplane is white so my wife started calling it "Blanquita", which is a common Spanish nick-name for a white girl. After a while, the name just stuck. Then a few years ago, my youngest daughter incorporated features from my two daughters and my two granddaughters and came up with an image of "Blanquita". The image now adorns the cowl.

94e2.jpg


:cool:
 
Last edited:
My RV-4 is Miss Fusion. A well engineered conglomeration of parts and pieces lovingly manufactured and assembled by me some 30 plus years ago. She has the ability to combine many facets of flight and most of them very well, and I think of her as a continuous fusion of activities. Rarely do I fly her and not finish the post inspection with an affectionate pat on the spinner and some kind words.

The Pitts S1S is Chica Chiquita, Spanish for little girl and the yellow and red trim make her look as if she's always dancing and I'm her incompetent partner. She's eye candy to other pilots and bystanders and I'm proud to be her guy.

Cheers, Hans
 
My 7 is called, Roadrunner.

It harkins back to my former life as an ultramarathon runner & training in high altitude Albuquerque. Saw many roadrunners on the trails in those days.

It was also the location of my first solo flight at Double Eagle(KAEG)
 
Last edited:
I've never been much for naming my stuff, even boats, and had no intention of naming my 6A other than getting the call sign "GERZ" to make sure everyone knows whose plane it is!

That changed in 2013 though. In late 2012 I barely survived a prolapsed mitral valve and emergency valve replacement surgery. As I was recovering, odds were 50/50 at best that I would get my medical back. During that time, I hired a young female AME (A & P to you Americans) to help me with some mods on the plane. She posed the question, have you ever thought of naming the plane? I said no, I really hadn't thought about it, and she said it was such a "beautiful bird" (her words) that it seemed like it deserved a name. After that conversation I started thinking about it, and decided that IF I got my medical back, I would commemorate that event by giving the plane a name. Once I thought of it that way, the name came to me in about 2 minutes; a name that would impart the gift of getting my flying privileges back. A couple of months later I did get my medical back, and I went out and had vinyl cut right away. My plane has worn the moniker "Second Wind" on her nose ever since, to remind me that I was given both a second chance to fly and a second chance to live.

I would never name a plane, car, boat or motorcycle just for the sake of giving it a name. I agree with those who have said that the name has to come along by itself and mean something. "Second Wind" definitely has very deep meaning for me!
 
Kamina

My RV7 is called Kamina
That word in Africa means "Its mine"
Warts and all.
First aircraft I ever owned. Or built.
 
Ours is named Happy Draggin'

Red & Black RV7. Can't figure out how to get my picture inserted.

Flying her sure makes us happy. Of course she drags the steering wheel in back.
 
Sweet Baby

I have named my project (soon to be an 8A) after my soulmate and muse, Sweet Baby. Pinup nose art will complete the picture.

However, I did not stop there. Since I plan on flying Sweet Baby around the world, I have named her engine Constance (it?s aspirational).
 
They said...

They said,"Building an airplane is a journey."
I respectfully pronounce that as a massive understatement. In my experience it is nothing less than a pilgrimage. I'm in the doesn't-name-things camp, but in this case an exception is mandatory. If I ever get it finished it shall be known as Pilgrim.
 
My Baby

My wife's maiden name is Beebe (bee bee). With just a bit of sweetness, that became "My Beebe" as I hold her (my wife) in my arms.
So the RV-9A now - thanks to John Stahr - a nice moniker of "My Beebe" on the nose.
 
If you take more than two decades to complete, then you need a suitable name...:)

oQZ.jpg


Not connected to the tail art though -

oQU.jpg
 
az_gila said:
If you take more than two decades to complete, then you need a suitable name...:)
Click to expand...

Or drop every extra penny you can scrounge up while building her. When they ask what her name is I'll proudly answer "Pretti Penni".

DiVUdd1bihHEXr6h9qcEn2uM909IIUDAourwjHzTYakxZHYeAufl2Hs5H3Vj7oqwxQQyduqvwHuzaWIsgg=w782-h440
 
Last edited:
I never had the problem, I call mine "Air Force One". It always gets some puzzled looks even from pilots, then I have to explain it is not a nickname I use for it, but that it is actually registered as Air Force One! Keeps me in libation as well, ALWAYS good for a case of beer bet that I own Air Force One!
37w9e.jpg
[/IMG]
 
Last edited:
Whiskey Three

Whisky Three
My Dad's call sign as air attack boss with the Forest Service in the 60's and 70's. He built wood boats when I was growing up, so I got the 'builder bug'.
 
DonFromTX said:
I never had the problem, I call mine "Air Force One". It always gets some puzzled looks even from pilots, then I have to explain it is not a nickname I use for it, but that it is actually registered as Air Force One! Keeps me in libation as well, ALWAYS good for a case of beer bet that I own Air Force One!
Click to expand...
You didn't send a first flight report to Vans, did you? AF1 models aren't able to be calculated in the upcoming 10,000 RV's flown worldwide! :p
 
Interesting, I never thought about that even. I made so many modifications to what started as kit 461, I felt I owed it to Vans to not call it an RV12.

many
KRviator said:
You didn't send a first flight report to Vans, did you? AF1 models aren't able to be calculated in the upcoming 10,000 RV's flown worldwide! :p
Click to expand...
 
Saville said:
I also like:

"Pistolero"
"Red Hot Rose"
"Racy Rose"
Click to expand...

I've added a couple to the above list:

"Blue Shadow"
"Trouble Bound"


For "Blue Shadow" the plane has the colors of the 352nd FG - blue nose.

I recently came across the song by the Blasters called "Trouble Bound". If one were an aggressive fighter pilot...one would definitely be out "...looking for trouble...".
 
she was "Cinnamon Girl" from the moment her paint dried..

...
I run in the night
You see us together
Chasing the moonlight
My cinnamon girl...
 
I don't name my planes, but after the first 3 terrible landings I had in my 8 right after I bought it, "Bucking Bronco" crossed my mind.
 
Only the nickname on the nose:

"Rivette Overdrive"

because displaying her majesty's true name would add far too much weight in vinyl:

"Her Levitating Majesty
Tameress of Turbulence
Seldom Detonating Mistress
of Sparse Atmospheres
Brzelda the Great"
 
When I purchased my RV-8 I realized that I needed to spend significant time getting to know her and learning how to fly her. My wife was not so happy with the time I spent at the airport. One evening a friend of hers asked me if I had named the airplane, before I could reply my wife declared "It's his Beloved". I thought "who am I to question such a thing?" and so "Beloved" she is!
 
LuckyDuck said:
When I purchased my RV-8 I realized that I needed to spend significant time getting to know her and learning how to fly her. My wife was not so happy with the time I spent at the airport. One evening a friend of hers asked me if I had named the airplane, before I could reply my wife declared "It's his Beloved". I thought "who am I to question such a thing?" and so "Beloved" she is!
Click to expand...

A friend of mine has "The Other Woman" on his airplane's cowl...
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top