They will unveil an empty box emblazoned "Fuse Kit", and the masses will storm their booth with wads of cash in hand....glorious! Oh and the fuse kits will ship by the end of the year, ya know!
I thought the RV-15 wing kit box unveiling onstage in 2025 was a masterful piece of showmanship.
It had been sitting there for the entire presentation, with if I remember correctly, a Vans banner draped over it. And then unveiled with a flourish, and the stampede started
I thought the RV-15 wing kit box unveiling onstage in 2025 was a masterful piece of showmanship.
It had been sitting there for the entire presentation, with if I remember correctly, a Vans banner draped over it. And then unveiled with a flourish, and the stampede started
From an entertainment perspective this is like watching the buildup, hype, & speculation surrounding the latest & greatest Apple iPhone releases. Should make a great marketing case study for future MBA students someday.
What I would love to see is for them to park it next to a C-180 with a display board showing dimensions and performance specs of both.
Much as I would love to order one at Oshkosh I wouldn’t be surprised if they aren’t there yet. I also suspect that doing the big long line of ordering of subkits for those who are already confirmed buyers is not the greatest use of their in-person time at Oshkosh. They are there to hook in new buyers. And The tail kit roll out was pretty straightforward while sitting in my hangar vs 90 minutes in line.
I wonder if Vans provided an update on the fuselage design since the EAA webinar on 1/31/2026. That's the last update I've been tracking.
From that webinar, I got the following:
The final door design is not done. There will be improved ventilation over the demonstrator aircraft (which lacked sufficient fresh airflow).
The doors open more than on the Cessnas. This required the wing strut to be angled some which increases stress, but the design accounts for that.
The doors will be removable. May be able to fly with the doors off. They must evaluate this further.
The final fuselage design is not done. It may not need a support brace above the instrument panel. Sounds like there may be small surprises coming with the fuselage design. Maybe a more unique cargo door than was previously suggested by the vinyl cut-out seen at air shows.
