What's new
Van's Air Force

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

Email notifications for modified kit orders

greghughespdx

greghughespdx

Well Known Member
Advertiser
Today we will begin sending emails to those customers with open airframe kits (tail/emp, wing, fuselage, and finish kits) on order. These emails will each contain a link to a website that will allow the customer to review their original order as well as the new, modified order offer from Van's Aircraft. Those emails will be sent in multiple waves over the next couple days.

Customers who have open orders for engines, avionics kits, powerplant kits, and certain backorders will not be included in this week's wave of emails. The Van's management team is working with the vendors that supply those parts. Once a specific plan has been determined for each class of order, we will communicate directly with those customers, as well. Thank you for your patience.​
 
And for the limbo customers?

Gregg, Thanks for the update

what about for those of us in a middle ground?

My -10 wing kit was paid for and finalized in early Oct. But I was set to pick it up 3 Nov and obviously was unable with the assessment going on.

Still was a pleasure to chat with you that morning and get some insight into how this situation developed while I was picking up a taillight.
 
I got the email just now. Thank you for also including the in-stock kit counts!

That goes a long way towards giving us some timeline - as best as we can probably know.

Interestingly, the order of acceptance of the updated terms sets the order in which the kits will be shipped if they're in stock. That makes sense, as we do need to convert those kits into payments ASAP.

I hope that by the time I'm ready to order the finishing kit I'm able to delete the cowling like we can the spinner.
 
inktomi said:
I got the email just now. Thank you for also including the in-stock kit counts!

That goes a long way towards giving us some timeline - as best as we can probably know.

Interestingly, the order of acceptance of the updated terms sets the order in which the kits will be shipped if they're in stock. That makes sense, as we do need to convert those kits into payments ASAP.

I hope that by the time I'm ready to order the finishing kit I'm able to delete the cowling like we can the spinner.
Click to expand...

Daily or periodic updates of the in-stock kit counts during this period until end of January will help people on the fence to take the right for them decision. IMHO
 
Keep in mind that in some cases Vans is adding sales tax to the orders.

In my case that is a pay me now or pay me later kind of thing that has nothing to do with Vans! TN is aggressive when it comes to use tax on airplanes. Every nickel I pay in sales tax is a nickel I won’t pay in use tax.
 
Modified kit order

I accepted the new terms/price but get stuck on the preparing document page. Anyone else having this issue?
 
Greg thanks, got my email last night, I have two orders RV 10 QB wing order last Feb. and Fuselage order in Aug. the link only included the order for the fuselage. Can I expect a second email on the wing Kit, or should I have seen both orders on the one link, hoping you can shed some light on this. Looking forward to continuing the build process
Scott D
RV9a built and flying
RV10 in process
 
greghughespdx said:
Today we will begin sending emails to those customers with open airframe kits (tail/emp, wing, fuselage, and finish kits) on order. These emails will each contain a link to a website that will allow the customer to review their original order as well as the new, modified order offer from Van's Aircraft. Those emails will be sent in multiple waves over the next couple days.

Customers who have open orders for engines, avionics kits, powerplant kits, and certain backorders will not be included in this week's wave of emails. The Van's management team is working with the vendors that supply those parts. Once a specific plan has been determined for each class of order, we will communicate directly with those customers, as well. Thank you for your patience.​
Click to expand...

Thanks for the update. As a customer with lots of important parts on backorder, it is nice to know I haven't been forgotten. Good luck sorting through the tough chores, Greg.
 
Greg,

People are receiving emails - 300 people have accepted the new terms apparently.

Is it true that order priority will go to those who accept first?

If this is the case then it’s an UNFAIR system. I’m waiting checking my emails every 10 mins and haven’t received anything. If the delay at your end in sending me an email means I miss out on my finish kit because you are out of stock etc then the system is not fair.

Is there a way to check if our email has been sent? Aka did they send it to my correct email etc?? I hope it is not via post as this very unfairly affects overseas customers.
 
Last edited:

Attachments

  • IMG_5605.jpeg
    IMG_5605.jpeg
    164 KB · Views: 87
I received my email, registered with the portal and I see that only one of my two orders is listed there for renewal under new terms. Second order and deposit information is not even there.
Already sent a request to VANs via the portal, hopefully they will fix soon.
 
No email for me either and I have a fuselage kit that I made the "final" payment on in August :(

I also made a deposit on a Finishing kit last spring...plus a deposit on an engine...
 
Last edited:
I have not received the email either. I have a small loss compared to many, as I only had a down payment on the empennage kit.
 
I have feeling the first offers are going to those with multiple deposits 1st.
The more revenue they can immediately generate off available inventory to ship the better for the company.
 
TASEsq said:
Greg,

People are receiving emails - 300 people have accepted the new terms apparently.

Is it true that order priority will go to those who accept first?

If this is the case then it’s an UNFAIR system. I’m waiting checking my emails every 10 mins and haven’t received anything. If the delay at your end in sending me an email means I miss out on my finish kit because you are out of stock etc then the system is not fair.

Is there a way to check if our email has been sent? Aka did they send it to my correct email etc?? I hope it is not via post as this very unfairly affects overseas customers.
Click to expand...

Not fair : You bet.

The CH11 process is geared toward the companies survival not the consumer or creditors.
 
maxmirot said:
I have feeling the first offers are going to those with multiple deposits 1st.
The more revenue they can immediately generate off available inventory to ship the better for the company.
Click to expand...

Don’t have a clue what method they are using but I can tell you that ain’t the strategy.
 
Greg: please post when all emails have been sent, in the unlikely event that someone (selfishly me) gets missed. The deadlines are tight.
 
Still waiting for my email as well. Hopefully comes soon. I want to start moving forward on this adventure.
 
Brantel said:
Don’t have a clue what method they are using but I can tell you that ain’t the strategy.
Click to expand...

I ordered all my RV14 kits on March 30 and have not received an email yet. If they are putting people who respond to the email first at the top of the list, I hope those are the people who were already first in line. Reordering the list now based on how quickly people respond seems a little unfair to me.

ALSO, is there any evidence Vans will discontinue quick build kits?
 
maxmirot said:
The priority is cash generation. They have said this.
Click to expand...

Well, when they are ready to ship, I'm ready to pay. If I were them and was prioritizing cash, I'd prioritize people who have outstanding deposits on all the kits. Since they could afford to do all that at once, they are more likely to be able to come up with the rest of the cash quickly.

I'm not saying this is fair but if that is the strategy they are pursuing I should be getting my email soon.
 
mstrauss said:
I wonder if it's something as simple as alphabetical order.
Click to expand...

My last name starts with a C, but no email yet. I've wondered if the email is based on when your original order was placed. I'm sure my order one of the later ones (late August).
 
maxmirot said:
The priority is cash generation. They have said this.
Click to expand...

Well they show no RV-12 Finish kits ready to crate yet I got the email for my finish kit order in what appeared as the first round to go out.....IDUNO
 
Last edited:
calvid said:
My last name starts with a C, but no email yet. I've wondered if the email is based on when your original order was placed. I'm sure my order one of the later ones (late August).
Click to expand...

Hmm, nope. RV-10 finish kit on order since March '22, under a last name beginning with an "A". No email. I very badly want them to succeed but feel a bit like Van's is in total chaos and isn't really reining it in.
 
rdt7 said:
Well, when they are ready to ship, I'm ready to pay. If I were them and was prioritizing cash, I'd prioritize people who have outstanding deposits on all the kits. Since they could afford to do all that at once, they are more likely to be able to come up with the rest of the cash quickly.

I'm not saying this is fair but if that is the strategy they are pursuing I should be getting my email soon.
Click to expand...

Discounting the -4 and the -6 there are six aeroplanes and four kits for each - total of 24 kit types.

They have a lot of inventory but it is very unbalanced. Some parts in excess, many parts none at all. This means that the number of each kit type that they can crate, even with a decision to leave a lot of parts on backorder for each kit, is quite limited. If some type of kit is being limited by them having none of, say, 25 different parts, that is going to take an age to rectify with their methods of production. So basically, if you're not near the top of their priority list for your particular kit type then forget getting anything anytime soon.

If I were Van's, my way of maximising cash inflow right now would be to generate customer order lists by kit type and then establish (with current stock and production over the next 2 months) how many kits of each type I can reasonably expect to deliver in that period. Then I'd arrange those customer lists according to which order gives me the most new cash, which I'm afraid means that anyone who's already paid in full goes to the bottom. Highest priority is actually a totally new order paying the full amount in one go.

If a customer has multiple orders open, I might use that as an indicator of ability to pay and would get folks on the phone to those customers to confirm it.
 
Last edited:
Emails?

So, it sounds like the first batch of 500 or so emails was a test run for the new website. It's not clear how those first 500 were selected. It's also not clear when they will send out the rest (about 1500) of the emails.
 
For those that didn't read the Kitplanes article posted today, TLDR quote from the Chief Restructuring Officer:

"We started off with approximately 550 live customers on a live portal to make sure nothing would break down. I think it’s about 1500 for kits only ... We were pleased that out of those first customers who got notice, more than 60% of them said, Yes, I’d like to renew my contract at the revised price and terms. We still need to work out [a plan] for those people who order engines and propellers and avionics, or other third-party parts. We obviously can’t raise those prices like we have on the kits."

Note that the website portal linked by the order modification email states as follows:

"In addition, many of you may also have undelivered backorders and/or deposits on an engine, powerplant kit, propeller, avionics, or other items. We do not yet have a clear plan in place for these products. Therefore, we are not yet presenting options for these products. We will communicate with you about our plans for these products as soon as the plans are established."
 
mstrauss said:
So, it sounds like the first batch of 500 or so emails was a test run for the new website. It's not clear how those first 500 were selected. It's also not clear when they will send out the rest (about 1500) of the emails.
Click to expand...

Got mine last night at 1:09 ET. Signed it to lock in a 33% price increase on a QB wing kit, QB fuse kit, and a finish kit. Here was the listed current availability of kits:


Kit Name Initial Stock Qty
RV-10 Tail Kits 50
RV-10 Fuselage Kits 30
RV-10 Wing Kits 27
RV-10 Finish Kits 21
RV-10 Quick Build Wing Kits 10
RV-10 Quick Build Fuselage Kits 12
RV-14/14A Tail Kits 16
RV-14 Wing Kits 40
RV-14/14A Finish Kits 21
RV-14 Quick Build Fuselage Kits 11
RV-12 Tail Kits 31
RV-12 Fuselage Kits 21
RV-12 Wing Kits 21
RV-7 Empennage Kits 10
RV-7 Wing Kits 8
RV-7 Fuselage Kits 5
RV-7 Quick Build Wing Kits 1
RV-8 Empennage Kits 23
RV-8 Wing Kits 13
RV-9/9A Empennage Kits 4
RV-9 Fuselage Kits 4
 
How\where did you get the kit availability list. Just signed my new order agreement this morning but could not find the kit availability info?
 
rdt7 said:
Got mine last night at 1:09 ET. Signed it to lock in a 33% price increase on a QB wing kit, QB fuse kit, and a finish kit. Here was the listed current availability of kits:


Kit Name Initial Stock Qty
RV-10 Tail Kits 50
RV-10 Fuselage Kits 30
RV-10 Wing Kits 27
RV-10 Finish Kits 21
RV-10 Quick Build Wing Kits 10
RV-10 Quick Build Fuselage Kits 12
RV-14/14A Tail Kits 16
RV-14 Wing Kits 40
RV-14/14A Finish Kits 21
RV-14 Quick Build Fuselage Kits 11
RV-12 Tail Kits 31
RV-12 Fuselage Kits 21
RV-12 Wing Kits 21
RV-7 Empennage Kits 10
RV-7 Wing Kits 8
RV-7 Fuselage Kits 5
RV-7 Quick Build Wing Kits 1
RV-8 Empennage Kits 23
RV-8 Wing Kits 13
RV-9/9A Empennage Kits 4
RV-9 Fuselage Kits 4
Click to expand...

Sorry but prices don't lock anymore. You will pay the current price when shipment happens. So you could be see your price to up again realistically.
 
steve murray said:
How\where did you get the kit availability list. Just signed my new order agreement this morning but could not find the kit availability info?
Click to expand...

In the portal, under Option One, item #2. But it just seems like a static list, not updating in real time or anything. I doubt those numbers are accurate anymore.
 
steve murray said:
How\where did you get the kit availability list. Just signed my new order agreement this morning but could not find the kit availability info?
Click to expand...

It was on the first page that loaded after I clicked the link in the email, under "Option 1"
 
I would think the order would be folks who have been waiting in the que the longest and their turn is up next?
 
So, I got my email last night for the -14 QB fuse kit and now it appears that the brakes and wheels are extra, resulting in a 47% increase over the original kit cost. Weren't the brakes and wheels included in the original QB kit or am I missing something?
 
Mark Dickens said:
So, I got my email last night for the -14 QB fuse kit and now it appears that the brakes and wheels are extra, resulting in a 47% increase over the original kit cost. Weren't the brakes and wheels included in the original QB kit or am I missing something?
Click to expand...

I believe they used to be in the finishing kit. The finishing kit only went up something like 8% so it balances out the more expensive fuselage kit.
 
For me finish kit + fwf is an overall 35.9% increase, recognizing that crating is now included and you have to purchase the landing gear (Grove for me) separately.

The numbers in my portal page are misleading because they included a lot of add-ons in the original order as part of the original price; these add-ons now will have to be purchased separately. I had to put a spreadsheet together to get the apples-apples comparison.

Also, you don't get any indication of shipping schedules when you sign the agreement. It could be anytime between 2 weeks from now and eternity. If I get rapid shipment I'll begin to feel a little better because then I've only got to worry about the engine and the LCPs.

I've got the Van's Grimace!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top