i was considering buying a zodiac 601xl untill 2 had the wings fail inflight ( fatal accidents) . seems the top wing skins pulled loose and bent the wing aft along the fuselage. they stayed attached to the airframe however. the ntsb hasn't come to any conclusions and probably won't because of the experimantal nature of the plane. the plane is built using AVEX blind rivets( considered non structural). they are not dimpled or countersunk. they use a "flush" rivet with a puller that upsets the head to make it a round head shape that's half the height of a standard solid or round head rivet. the wing ribs are about 18"-24" apart with no diagonals or cross bracing and there are only 5 of then outboard of the wing walk area( each wing is about 12' long).
after all that, here is my question: what type of rivets will the rv12 be using and will there be additional ribs in the wings ? i called vans and they wouldn't comment. i think the 12 will be a great plane even if it doesn't have an O-200, sliding canopy, and a tailwheel. bernie
after all that, here is my question: what type of rivets will the rv12 be using and will there be additional ribs in the wings ? i called vans and they wouldn't comment. i think the 12 will be a great plane even if it doesn't have an O-200, sliding canopy, and a tailwheel. bernie