Check out this video on the team and their project!
See it on YouTube at:
http://youtu.be/haqgyE25YbI
See it on YouTube at:
http://youtu.be/haqgyE25YbI
New Paint Job, Flight Lessons, and Headed to Oshkosh!!
Here is our newly painted RV-12 ready for its trip to Airventure Oshkosh.
We received donated interior side panels and a carpet kit from Flight Line Interiors which has also been installed.
Most of the guys have now had an opportunity for at least one flight lesson in the airplane thanks to Mentor Jerry VanGrunsven. Here's cockpit photos of some of the gang (and the RV Grin x 12!!):
If you attend Airventure, stop by to say hello, and take a look at our RV-12.
We will be located just north of the control tower, near the Young Eagles Headquarters.
Update on Open House and What's to Come....
Our project open house was a great success and a fun way to wrap up our project, and to recognize all of the participants, mentors, and financial supporters.
We had a great turnout and great weather. A few of the team members got their first chance to fly in the RV-12 that they helped build. They all thought it was great.
Thanks to everyone that has encouraged us along the way, and for all of the great comments and enthusiasm we have received.
We hope you will continue to follow TeenFlight in the future, since we hope this is just the beginning of something even bigger.
Keep watching our blog for future updates about our trip to Airventure Oshkosh!
The Teen Flight End of Project Open House
An event to provide an opportunity to see the RV-12 fly, give some rides, and honor the Financial Supporters and Mentors, for their contributions that made this program possible, and of course recognize the Team Members for their efforts to complete the airplane.
Who:
Anyone that has been interested in the Teen Flight program, but particularly the Participants, Mentors, and Supporters, and their families and friends.
When:
June 4th, 2011 at 10:30 A.M.
A LOT HAS BEEN HAPPENING LATELY...
The flight testing of the RV-12 is just about completed. The airplane has about 7.0 hours of flight time now and everything has been working well.
The only adjustments up to this point, have been to slightly reduce the propeller pitch, add a trim tab to the rudder, and make a small adjustment to the stall warning indicator.
A plan is now in place to get some of our Team and the RV-12 they built, to the Air Venture Fly-in, in Oshkosh Wisconsin at the end of July.
They will be traveling via the RV-12, a couple of different RV-10's, and a Cessna Citation (That's Right, a Citation Jet).
We will have the airplane on display (we don't know where exactly yet), and plan to spread the word about the benefits of a youth airplane build project via a scheduled forum and numerous other opportunities.
If you plan to be there, look us up, we would love to show you the RV-12 we built..
Day 59 - May 5, 2011
RV-12 N112TF lifted off this evening at a little past 7 PM!
The flight was perfect with absolutely no problems. Only a small handful of the team members and mentors were available for this first flight but there will be other opportunities in the near future for all to enjoy!
In the words of Mr. McDaniels (Head Mentor and Test Pilot): "You guys built a great flying airplane...I hope you feel as proud as I and all of the mentors (and I am sure your parents), are of you."
Day 58 - April 30, 2011
It has been a frustrating wait, but multiple good things happened for us this week.
On Friday April 29th, our registration certificate arrived in the mail, and this opened the door for having our certification inspection the following day (Saturday, April 30th).
Mr. Frank Sneed, our DAR, walked through the whole process with the 7 Team Members that were in attendance, while they followed along using copies of his check list. Everything was found to be as it should be with the airplane, so when they were finished, we had in our hands a freshly filled out airworthiness certificate.
N112TF (first RV-12 built by Teen Flight) is now (in the FAA's eyes anyway) officially an airplane. Next step is to prove it's flight capabilities, as soon as we have insurance coverage. This is being generously donated by a broker/agent in Arizona, and it should be in place very soon.
Keep watching for the announcement of our first flight... it wont be long now.
Day 57 - March 13, 2011
At this moment the airplane sits fully assembled and for the most part ready to fly.
We are currently waiting to receive the registration from the FAA in Oklahoma City. After we have that in our possession, the registration numbers can be installed on the airplane (against the Federal Aviation Regulations to do so before) and we can then submit the paperwork for the airworthiness inspection.
We used this weeks work session to finish up a couple of items on our squawk list and finish a few final details such as install seatbelts, and a few more placards. We ended the day by getting the airplane up on the scales to obtain the needed weight data for computing the aircraft center of gravity and filling out the weight and balance documentation. Our finished RV-12 weighed exactly what our fearless leader guessed that it would... 722 lbs.
Stay tuned for news of our first flight... hopefully coming very soon.
We are currently waiting to receive the registration from the FAA in Oklahoma City. After we have that in our possession, the registration numbers can be installed on the airplane (against the Federal Aviation Regulations to do so before) and we can then submit the paperwork for the airworthiness inspection.
We used this weeks work session to finish up a couple of items on our squawk list and finish a few final details such as install seatbelts, and a few more placards. We ended the day by getting the airplane up on the scales to obtain the needed weight data for computing the aircraft center of gravity and filling out the weight and balance documentation. Our finished RV-12 weighed exactly what our fearless leader guessed that it would... 722 lbs.
Stay tuned for news of our first flight... hopefully coming very soon.
Day 56 - March 5, 2011
As often happens, after inspecting the airplane carefully, quite a few little things were found that needed to be resolved before we could stand back and say, "That is as good as we can do".
So, we spent the early part of our work session working through those issues. Consequently, we didn't get the Production Acceptance Procedures inspection completed. We did get a few more items in the check list marked off, and we did another engine run and completed the carburetor synch procedure.
We will be having one more regular work session next week to complete the P.A.P. and weigh the airplane. Then all we need is to receive our registration certificate back from the FAA, and get our final airworthiness inspection, and then we are ready to fly!
So, we spent the early part of our work session working through those issues. Consequently, we didn't get the Production Acceptance Procedures inspection completed. We did get a few more items in the check list marked off, and we did another engine run and completed the carburetor synch procedure.
We will be having one more regular work session next week to complete the P.A.P. and weigh the airplane. Then all we need is to receive our registration certificate back from the FAA, and get our final airworthiness inspection, and then we are ready to fly!
Day 55 - February 26, 2011 ... Engine Start!
We have (for the most part) a finished airplane!
We had 5 Team Members at this weeks work session. I think everyone present had a high level of anticipation because of the hope to do the first engine start this week.
We got the engine fluids installed and completed the oil system purging procedure. We took care of a few other unfinished items, and as we neared the end of our work session we braved the cold and rolled the airplane outside and put the wings on.
After adding some fuel and correcting a couple of fuel drips, we did the first engine start. We only ran it at low power for a minute or so to allow for verification of a proper reading on all engine monitor values.
Next week we will bring the engine to operating temperature, and do a synchronization of the carburetors. We also have just a couple of final details to finish up (a few more placards to install, seat belts, etc), and complete the rest of the PAP (production acceptance procedure) check list which will include weighing the airplane and calculating the weight and balance information.
It is looking like next week will be our last regular work session, then we will be ready to fly once the proper paper work and certification inspection is completed.
Day 54 - February 19, 2011
The TeenFlight RV-12 is almost ready to fly!
We had 6 of the guys at this weeks work session which made it a bit hectic with lots of things happening all at once. It also allowed us to make a lot of progress, and to finalize a lot of little details.
Construction is now completed except for finishing the placard installation, finishing a couple little details on the canopy latch, installing the ELT antenna, and to complete most of the Miscellania section 33 (Install interior inspection covers, seat belts, etc.)
We completed some of the initial PAP (production acceptance procedure) check list inspection items, and it looks like all of our avionics and other electrical items are working properly.
We will continue with the check list next week, get coolant and oil installed in the engine systems, and hopefully do the first engine start...
We had 6 of the guys at this weeks work session which made it a bit hectic with lots of things happening all at once. It also allowed us to make a lot of progress, and to finalize a lot of little details.
Construction is now completed except for finishing the placard installation, finishing a couple little details on the canopy latch, installing the ELT antenna, and to complete most of the Miscellania section 33 (Install interior inspection covers, seat belts, etc.)
We completed some of the initial PAP (production acceptance procedure) check list inspection items, and it looks like all of our avionics and other electrical items are working properly.
We will continue with the check list next week, get coolant and oil installed in the engine systems, and hopefully do the first engine start...
Day 53 - February 12, 2011
We had four of the guys at our work session this week.
The propeller/spinner installation was completed.
We also finished a lot of little details such as the cooling shroud modification,installed the fuel filler tube, insulating foil on the interior of the cowling, and a few final details for the canopy installation.
It is looking like we are on track for a first engine start in two weeks!
Day 52 - February 5, 2011
We had three of our Team Members at our regular work session this week. This week was a final mile stone of sorts. We got the canopy fiberglass layup work finished which was the last major project that we needed to get past as we near completion. It is now mostly finish shaped and sanded, but still needs filling and final sanding in preparation for paint.
We also completed the final chapter (#60) of the main construction manual with the completion of the engine control installation. We got close to finishing the spinner installation, and finished up some misc. items such as installing radiator seals on the cowling, finishing the heater control, and installing the heat shield metal foil in the cowl bottom.
Day 51 - February 3, 2011
We had another mid-week work session to complete the canopy fiberglass layup so that it wouldn't interupt our work progress at our regular work session.
Day 50 - January 29, 2011
Due to illness and other schedule conflicts, we only had two Team Members at our Saturday work session this week. We still made some good progress with all of the fitting and drilling of the propeller spinner which is now completed. We just need to final size the holes and install nutplates for the screws.
We also got the surface preparation work on the canopy completed, so we should be doing the fiberglass lay up very soon.
We also got the surface preparation work on the canopy completed, so we should be doing the fiberglass lay up very soon.
Day 49 - January 27, 2011
We had a couple of the guys attend a special mid week work session to allow some work to be done on the canopy without it impacting access to other areas during our regular Saturday session.
We have been postponing the canopy fiberglass work because of the impact it would have on other progress, but we are at the point where it is just about all that is left. We completed some final fit checks of the canopy and got most of the shaping done on the foam filler pieces.
Day 48 - January 22, 2011
We missed our work session last week because our program leader was sick, but it seems as though we made up for it this week.
We made great progress on the engine installation. All of the engine wiring is now completed. The only thing engine related left to do is install the engine controls and propeller.
We finished up a lot of loose ends such as: we installed the interior cover panels and the fuel tank; bled the brake system; and filled cleco holes in the cowling.
Day 47 - January 8, 2011
We had four Team Members at this week's work session (our first for the new year), despite some icy roads in our area.
We continue to make slow steady progress as we near the end.
We now have the cooling duct bonded into the cowling, and we were able to verify that we have good alignment and proper clearance of the propeller spinner to the cowling.
We have made additional progress on the Fire Wall Forward wiring.
In the photo below, we installed the golden rivet (figuratively) during this work session by doing the last of the riveting with the installation of the aft cockpit top skins and the rear window.
We are now at the point where the work that remains is spread between about 5 of the 60 total construction chapters. We still have a lot to do, but the excitement level is building.
We continue to make slow steady progress as we near the end.
We now have the cooling duct bonded into the cowling, and we were able to verify that we have good alignment and proper clearance of the propeller spinner to the cowling.
We have made additional progress on the Fire Wall Forward wiring.
In the photo below, we installed the golden rivet (figuratively) during this work session by doing the last of the riveting with the installation of the aft cockpit top skins and the rear window.
We are now at the point where the work that remains is spread between about 5 of the 60 total construction chapters. We still have a lot to do, but the excitement level is building.
Day 46 - December 18, 2010
This was our last work session of 2010. We had four team members in attendance.
We completed the Avionics Kit installation, and made additional progress on the Powerplant installation with work focused on finishing the Engine Cooling System Section and the Firewall Forward Wiring Section.
We will be on Holiday break for the next two Saturdays but will be back at work on January 8th.
We completed the Avionics Kit installation, and made additional progress on the Powerplant installation with work focused on finishing the Engine Cooling System Section and the Firewall Forward Wiring Section.
We will be on Holiday break for the next two Saturdays but will be back at work on January 8th.
Day 45 - December 11, 2010
We had four Team members at our work session this week.
We completed the Avionics installation with the exception of the first power-up and system testing. More progress was made on the engine installation section, and we started work on the propeller/spinner installation.
We completed the Avionics installation with the exception of the first power-up and system testing. More progress was made on the engine installation section, and we started work on the propeller/spinner installation.
Day 44 - December 4, 2010
We took a break for the Thanksgiving Holiday but we are back to work this week.
We had 3 Team Members at our work session this week.
This work session marks another major milestone for us... we mounted the engine! We also made some additional progress on the avionics kit. We should be completing that work soon. That means most of the remaining work to do is related to the powerplant kit.... engine controls, sensor wiring, exhaust system, and propeller, just to name a few. So there is still a lot to do but the end is now in sight.
Day 43 - November 20, 2010
With five Team Members at our work session this week, we made some good progress.
The landing gear section is now complete with the installation of the brake lines.
The empennage installation will be complete, after the installation of the servo/control arm for the anti-servo tab. We also made some good progress towards completing the Avionics Kit.
All of the engine preparation work is finished and it is ready to install on the fuselage, but we chose to delay that until completing the installation of the cooling radiator on the firewall.
The empennage installation will be complete, after the installation of the servo/control arm for the anti-servo tab. We also made some good progress towards completing the Avionics Kit.
All of the engine preparation work is finished and it is ready to install on the fuselage, but we chose to delay that until completing the installation of the cooling radiator on the firewall.
Day 42 - November 13, 2010
We, once again, had four Team Members at our work session. We made some great progress, and it is really starting to look like a nearly finished airplane.
The fuselage is now standing on its own three feet (landing gear), and the entire Empenage (French word for tail surfaces) is now attached to the fuselage. We also got a very good start on the Avionics installation (all of the equipment that mounts in the instrument panel). We should be able to wrap most of that up by the end of our next work session.
The fuselage is now standing on its own three feet (landing gear), and the entire Empenage (French word for tail surfaces) is now attached to the fuselage. We also got a very good start on the Avionics installation (all of the equipment that mounts in the instrument panel). We should be able to wrap most of that up by the end of our next work session.
Day 41 - November 6, 2010
Four Team Members made it to our work session this week. We completed the control system installation section. This allowed us to move on to the landing gear section which is now partially completed. By the end of our next work session the fuselage should be sitting on its wheels. We also completed some minor adjustments to the flaperons, and finished the preparation work required on the engine before it gets mounted to the fuselage.
Day 40 - October 30, 2010
We were able to mark this day by hitting another major mile stone...Fitting the wings to the fuselage. We have just a couple things to wrap up in the control system installation section and then we will be off and running with final assembly work installing the landing gear, horizontal stabilator, and getting started with the avionics and engine installations.
Day 39 - October 23, 2010
We had 6 Team Members at our work session this week.
The other two Team Members began the preparation work that has to be done on the engine before it is installed on the airframe. Yes, we now have all of the remaining parts of the RV-12 in our shop (Avionics and panel Instrumentation, Engine, Propeller, etc.).
Keep watching, in the next few weeks it will take on the appearance of being a finished airplane (but there are still a lot of small time consuming details to finalize).
Four of them made good progress towards completing manual Section 32, which we should be able to finish up next week. This will allow us to do the initial fitting of the wings and then move forward with the last details of the finish kit portion of the project which includes installing landing gear and installation of the Horizontal Stabilator and completing the final control system hook-ups.
Keep watching, in the next few weeks it will take on the appearance of being a finished airplane (but there are still a lot of small time consuming details to finalize).
Day 38 - October 16, 2010
We had 4 Team Members at our work session this week.
We completed the Fuselage wiring.
All brake lines are now installed, and most of the rudder control system work is completed.
In the next couple of weeks we will be putting concentrated effort into finishing the control system installation and getting the wings fitted.
We completed the Fuselage wiring.
All brake lines are now installed, and most of the rudder control system work is completed.
In the next couple of weeks we will be putting concentrated effort into finishing the control system installation and getting the wings fitted.
Day 37 - October 9, 2010
We had 5 Team Members at the start of our work session this week. We made some good progress toward completing the finish kit portion of the RV-12 project.
The fuselage wiring harness installation is finally competed except for the last couple of steps, which shouldn't take very long next week. This will allow us to get to work on the control system installation and initial fitting of the wings.
Additional progress was made on the canopy installation. We are wrapping up the final prep. work to be ready to do the fiberglass lay-up installation at the front of the canopy.
Day 36 - October 2, 2010
We had five team members at our work session this week. Our work goal was to concentrate on completing the fuselage wiring harness installation so that we can begin making progress on installing the control system and fitting the wings. Other than a couple of minor items, we reached that goal. We also made progress on finishing the canopy installation.
Day 35 - September 25, 2010
We had six Team Members at our work session this week. We completed the cowl installation and made more good progress on the canopy installation. We also made some additional progress on the fuselage wiring harness installation. Stay tuned for photos!
WE'RE BACK!!! Day 34 - September 18, 2010
Our first work session after a summer break and we got off to a slow but steady start.
We only had two Team Members in attendance but we made some good progress on the engine cowling and the canopy installation.
The Avionics and Power Plant kits will be put on order during this next week in anticipation of us completing the finish kit work in the next few weeks.
We only had two Team Members in attendance but we made some good progress on the engine cowling and the canopy installation.
The Avionics and Power Plant kits will be put on order during this next week in anticipation of us completing the finish kit work in the next few weeks.
Day 33 - June 5, 2010
This was our final work session before taking some time off for a summer break. We had four Team Members in attendance. We made additional progress on the engine cowl installation, the fuselage wiring harness, and finished a bit of work that remained on the tailcone fairing.
Keep watching our blog...We will post new photos, videos soon and will provide updates on when we plan to start back up.
Keep watching our blog...We will post new photos, videos soon and will provide updates on when we plan to start back up.
Day 32 - May 22, 2010
We had another work session with 6 team members present. We were visited by KGW TV news, channel 8, which ran a story on their 5 PM and 5:30 PM news programs. A written version of the KGW story can be viewed at:
http://www.kgw.com/lifestyle/Local-Teens-Build-Airplane-94673834.html
It is a very positive story, and we are thankful to them for taking the time to do this and give our program a little local exposure.
We made good progress on the canopy on Saturday. It is now drilled to the frame and the fit looks very good. The cowling installation is also well along and looking good. The vertical stabilizer and rudder got their tip fairings finished, sanded, and installed. The vertical stabilizer is now permanently installed on the fuselage.
http://www.kgw.com/lifestyle/Local-Teens-Build-Airplane-94673834.html
It is a very positive story, and we are thankful to them for taking the time to do this and give our program a little local exposure.
We made good progress on the canopy on Saturday. It is now drilled to the frame and the fit looks very good. The cowling installation is also well along and looking good. The vertical stabilizer and rudder got their tip fairings finished, sanded, and installed. The vertical stabilizer is now permanently installed on the fuselage.
Day 31 - May 21, 2010
This week was a little different from our usual schedule. We held a mid week work session on Friday because Dave Salesky from KATU News, Channel 2, came to do a story on the TeenFlight program. The TeenFlight news story is going to air locally on KATU, Channel 2 on Friday, June 11th, most likely during one or all of the evening news programs.
We had six of our team members present and we made great progress on the cowling and canopy installations, and the installation of the tail cone fairing was nearly completed.
We had six of our team members present and we made great progress on the cowling and canopy installations, and the installation of the tail cone fairing was nearly completed.
Day 30 - 15 May, 2010
We had 5 team members present for our work session this week. We made progress on the engine cowling and tailcone fairing installations. Work was also started on installation of the main fuselage wiring harness and we finished up mounting the tires on the wheels.
This coming Friday we have a special work session scheduled for a visit from one of our local TV news stations. After that, we have two more Saturday work sessions scheduled (we will not have a work session on Memorial day weekend) and then we will be taking a badly needed summer break.
This coming Friday we have a special work session scheduled for a visit from one of our local TV news stations. After that, we have two more Saturday work sessions scheduled (we will not have a work session on Memorial day weekend) and then we will be taking a badly needed summer break.
Day 29 - May 8, 2010
Our current level of progress has brought us to a point where it has become difficult for 12 people to be working at the same time, because of the required work being focused in two or three confined areas. Because of this, we are now working on a rotating schedule with two teams working one week and then the other two teams working the next.
This week we had five Team Members at our work session. We made progress on completing the rear tail cone fairing installation, and trimming the engine cowling in preparation for it's installation.
We also completed the installation of the forward upper fuselage and began the installation of the canopy.
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