In the early 1970s, a skinny young engineer from rural Oregon built himself a better mousetrap. Actually, in this case, it was a better airplane. Richard (Van) VanGrunsven’s RV-3 impressed a lot of people, and it turned out that many of them were willing to take on the task of building an airplane from scratch so that they, too could have an airplane that flew like Van’s. Seizing the opportunity to work with his real love, aviation, Van's Aircraft, Inc. began in 1973 with partial kits for the RV-3. These were manufactured by Van himself, working in a small shop behind his house in Reedville, Oregon. Later the company moved to North Plains, Oregon, a small town about 25 miles west of Portland. After twenty years and several expansions, Van’s had exhausted the available opportunities in North Plains, so in 2000 the company moved to a new 60,000 square foot facility on the Aurora, Oregon airport. Currently the company employees 70 people (and hundreds more in sub-contract roles) and keeps them busy producing several hundred complete aircraft kits a year and shipping them all over the world.

The RV "model line" has expanded considerably in thirty-one years.
(The RV, of course, stands for Richard VanGrunsven, who still heads the company and commutes to work from his home airstrip every day. Nobody has ever accused him of being original when it comes to naming airplanes…) Here’s a brief history and chronology:

The RV-3’s outstanding performance gained an enthusiastic following, and naturally, many pilots wanted to share the experience with a friend. Van resisted for a while, reasoning that a bigger, heavier airplane just couldn’t perform as well as a light single-seater, but eventually he recognized the depth of the demand and began developing a two-place airplane. Tandem seating was chosen for the RV-4 because of the lower drag, superior centerline visibility, lighter weight, and overall fighter-like sportiness. It was a combination well suited to the market it entered in 1981. With performance nearly that of the RV-3 and an extra seat as well, the RV-4 became an immediate favorite and soon surpassed the RV-3 in popularity.

In the early to mid 1980s, the homebuilt market began to shift toward efficient touring, rather than pure sport airplanes. In response, Van’s developed the side-by-side RV-6. Careful design and attention to aerodynamic details resulted in a new airplane that retained the delightful handling and short field qualities of the RV-4, and despite the wider fuselage, had a top speed only 3 mph less. The trigear RV-6A was developed from the RV-6 to better fill the needs of the modern pilot. The addition of the nosewheel reduces the top speed only 2 mph.

In 1995, Van’s revisited the tandem concept and came up with the RV-8, a new design incorporating improvements learned from years of experience with the RV-4 and RV-6/6A. With a wider cockpit than the RV-4, two baggage compartments and increased instrument panel space, the RV-8 offers greater cross-country comfort without compromising the fighter-like sportiness of centerline seating. The RV-8 was designed to handle engines of 150-200 hp, and with the 200 hp IO-360 Lycoming, it sustains cruise speeds of 212 mph. Top speed is 222 mph. Naturally, the next question is: what about an RV-8A? The answer is, yes, of course! The RV-8A made its first flight in April 1998 and kits were available soon after.

The RV-9A, a side-by-side tricycle-gear design, was first flown in December 1997. A completely new wing with a higher aspect ratio and new airfoil gave excellent low speed flying qualities and very efficient cruise. Similar in size and weight to the RV-6, it cruises at about the same speeds, but stalls several miles per hour slower. This wing permits the use of lower-powered engines, providing an alternative for those who don’t feel the need for a "bigger, faster, more powerful" airplane. Somewhat later, the RV-9 tailwheel version was developed.

In the spring of 2001 the 2-seat side by side RV-7/7A was introduced, replacing the RV-6/6A. The RV-7/7A has slightly more leg and headroom than the RV-6/6A, carries more fuel, and has a higher allowable gross weight. It will accept all 4-cylinder Lycoming engines from the 150 hp O-320 to the 200 hp IO-360. The kit incorporates all of the advanced technology that Van’s learned designing and producing the RV-8/8A and the RV-9/9A.

In 2003, Van’s ventured into a whole new world and offered the RV-10, our first four-place airplane. Designed as a true four-person airplane (the ability to carry four people is different than having four seats) the RV-10 will carry four full-sized adults, sixty gallons of fuel and baggage. Speeds and performance are comparable to the two seat RVs, and better than most four-place production airplanes.

In 2005, about 4,000 RV kits (an average of almost 130 per year for the history of the company) have been completed and flown, and thousands more are under construction. Completion rates have exceeded one per day for the last few years. RVs are flying in at least 26 different countries and are under construction in more than fifty.

What about the RV-2 and RV-5? The RV-2, believe it or not, was a wooden flying-wing sailplane. Van started construction in the early 70s but the airplane was never finished or flown. Parts of it still hang on his hangar wall. The RV-5 was a very small metal single-seater, designed by Van and built by a group of friends from a local EAA chapter. Although it flew quite successfully with a small two-stroke engine, only one was ever built. It is still in Van’s hangar and one of Van’s engineers recently surveyed it with an eye toward restoration…it may fly again!

RV structures are "monocoque" or "stressed skin" designs. This means that the skins provide much of the airframe’s strength. The primary bending loads of the wing are carried by the single main spar. Wing torsional and drag loads are carried by the wing skins and rear spar. The same is true of the tail surfaces. The fuselage skins, whose shape is maintained by formed aluminum bulkheads, provide torsional and bending strength. Aluminum angle longerons in the fuselage provide stiffening for the skin and greater strength at localized points of attachment.

The RV-4 and RV-8/8A are soloed from the front seat, but elevator and aileron controls for the rear seat are also provided. The RV-7/7A, RV-9/9A and RV-10 feature full dual controls, except passenger brakes, which are optional. Baggage space in the RV-4 consists of about 7 cubic feet in a compartment behind the hinged seat back. Weight allowed is about 35 pounds, depending on optional equipment and other loading factors. The RV-4 has an optional front baggage area, accessible from within the cockpit, that can carry up to 15 pounds. The wide forward fuselage of the RV-8/8A provides not only more instrument panel space, cabin width and foot room than the RV-4, but also allows a forward baggage compartment between the instrument panel and the firewall. It holds about 4.75 cubic feet, and is accessible through an outside door. The traditional baggage compartment behind the rear seat remains. By having two places for baggage, one forward and one aft, the pilot has more loading options and is better able to control the CG. The RV-7/7A and RV-9/9A carry baggage behind the seats in a large 12-14 cubic foot bay. Depending on various factors (mostly the engine and propeller up front) they can carry between 65 and 100 pounds of baggage and two adults. The RV-10 has a generous baggage compartment aft of the rear seats, reached through a baggage door on the left side. The rear seats can be removed in a minute or two, providing a truly huge space.

All RV wings are relatively low aspect ratio, constant chord designs with no taper or twist. This planform offers light weight, easy construction, and favorable stall characteristics. The wide chord maximizes the permissible CG range. It also provides generous wing area and low wing loading even in a wing of short span. Because of this low wing loading, climb and altitude performance are unusually good for an airplane of such short span. Two-seat RVs (the RV-9/9A excepted) use the proven NACA 230 series airfoil. These are turbulent flow airfoils with very low pitching moments. They do not require perfectly smooth surfaces to achieve good performance, so they remain almost unaffected by bugs and rain. The low pitching moment allows cruise trim drag to be kept to a minimum. The RV-9/9A uses a new Roncz airfoil design with a slightly longer wing span, shorter chord and slotted flaps for better low speed performance. The RV-10 uses a similar wing, but with a slightly different airfoil.

The most important part of the airplane is the people inside it. Their safety is paramount. Since forward visibility and safety are close relatives, upright rather than supine seating was chosen. We felt that it would be illogical to lay the passengers down and then have them try to see forward over the engine. Operational safety and crash survivability, often overlooked in homebuilts, are primary concerns to everyone at Van’s. First, to limit the possibility of accidents, RVs have excellent controllability, gentle stall characteristics, and superb visibility. In the event of an unavoidable crash landing, (engine failure over rough terrain, for instance) their low landing speed has been a real lifesaver. A crash at 50 mph is 70% more survivable than one at 65 mph. This, along with the rugged cockpit structure and sturdy roll bar should permit you to walk away from, or at least survive, almost any controlled landing.

Comfort is also important. Too many airplanes contort their occupants to suit their shape. We choose to provide generous legroom, shoulder room and head room first and design the airplane around them. RV cockpits are quite roomy and accommodate pilots and passengers up to 6’ 4’’ tall -- even taller in the RV-8/8A. Minor modifications are possible to allow even taller people to fit.

Easy maintenance was another prime consideration. Controls, linkages and fittings are easy to install and service. Removing everything necessary for a complete annual inspection (cowl, inspection covers, fairings, etc.) takes less than an hour. The straightforward, simple airframe, control system and landing gear have only a few points that require service. Given proper storage and maintenance, the airframe is essentially a "life-time" structure.

RVs are designed and built so they can be dismantled when necessary. All of the tail surfaces removable. Wings are constructed in two separate panels and simply bolt to the fuselage. The landing gear attaches with just a few bolts. This permits easy transport to the airport for initial assembly, or later disassembly for major maintenance. Disassembly does require disconnecting the control, electric and fuel systems, so RVs should not be thought of as "take-home" or "trailerable" airplanes.

First and foremost, though, they are fun to fly. Their controls are light, responsive, and beautifully harmonized. Chances are that you have never flown an airplane that offers anything approaching the exhilarating sensation of an RV.

Balancing all the competing and conflicting requirements involved in a "Total Performance" airplane is a difficult task – just think of how few airplanes have really done it well.

RVs are those airplanes.