Do I see lots of pulled rivets? That should speed up the build!

Lots of pulled rivets and right angles. Should be very buildable.

I’d thought this was going to be a close competitor to the RANS S-21, but they’re right next to each other at OSH and the RV appears much larger.

A better video from AOPA with a couple more details.

By the way, check out the gear legs from the previous video. Pat. pending design that looks considerably stiffer than leaf-spring style flat gear legs.

[youtube]https://youtu.be/DefmAJG9Wos[/youtube]

Scrappy-like crowds around the RV-15. Vans rep says they plan to offer pulled rivets or solid rivets depending on builder preference.

Nice to see Dick V still running things.

That really looks like a heck of an airplane. I wish I was 20 years younger.

Dan

900lbs empty with an IO-390. That should provide "sporty" takeoff performance.

By simple math, using round figures... 900 empty, + 400 humans + 250 cargo + 230 to 300lbs (38-50 gals) full fuel = max gross around 1800-1850lbs. With the IO-390 performance will be excellent, even at full gross. With a 180hp O-360 it will still be a performer. The bigger engine will be a nice tradeoff against the drag of bigger tires for "off road" adventures.

Pulled rivets = faster, easier build. It will be interesting to see how much jigging will be required to build it, how close to a "one person build" it will be.

Baggage hatch = ugh, wish it had a real DOOR back there to get big stuff in and out

I'm not sure if the patrol doors will be standard or optional - my bet is a LOT of people will build with these doors as they hugely improve visibility and sense of cockpit roominess. Then again, some people don't like 'em because they increase the sensation of there being very little between a passenger and a long fall to Mother Earth.

This is going to be interesting to watch.

It looks very cool. I must say however, that the Sling high wing is way sexier.

I asked them about the patent pending. The guy I talked to mentioned about an “oil / compressed gas” shock absorber. I asked if it was the same as used by cars for the past 80 years? He then went on to discuss the linkage or mounting. Ok, sure. It doesn’t have bungees or spring steel gear legs, like many (virtually all) taildraggers.

Tony, that seems to be a miscommunication. It's the gear legs that are patented.

Kitplanes was given exclusive access before the debut and posted their article yesterday: https://kitplanes.com/vans-rv-15-on-top/

And here's a really good interview with the president of Van's that goes into a lot of detail:

[youtube]https://youtu.be/eeQi6kAf9a8[/youtube]

Thanks. That video saved me a trip to Oshkosh. This checks all the boxes.

None of Van's matched-hole kits (-7,8,9,10,12,14) require jigs so it is a safe bet that none will be required for the RV-15 build.

The trailing edge of the stabilator is interesting and or odd.
May have been done to get better centering or feel. Aerobatic planes do similar on ailerons. I wouldn’t be pushing the plane around by the stabilizer like we do on many tail draggers that have a true horizontal stabilizer.

Here's a good YouTube channel on the Zenith. https://www.youtube.com/c/KitplaneEnthusiast1

I think they are very cool. I actually like the look of them but some think they're butt ugly, and of course it's a tri-gear only. The cockpit visibility and stol performance speak for themselves though, and as you mentioned they are known for being simple to build. I'm a fan!

New Vans video on the 15
[youtube]https://youtu.be/SX1vam_lCrA[/youtube]