The first-ever high-wing design from Van’s Aircraft, which has more than 50 years’ experience designing high-performance low-wing airplanes, has entered production. Van’s has begun manufacturing wing kits, which will be shipping and in builders’ hands this year.
On the first morning of EAA AirVenture 2025, Van’s opened orders for the wing-kit portion of the smooth-handling RV-15. Deliveries of the wing kits, which are made up of aluminum skins and structural components that are “pre punched” to final size and assembled with easy-to-use, aerospace-quality blind rivets, will begin before year’s end. This construction method greatly reduces build time and makes the RV-15 easier to construct than any Van’s RV in history.
“The RV-15 is a game changer for the backcountry flying community and Van’s Aircraft,” said Mikael Via, Van’s Aircraft CEO. “Our design engineers have worked tirelessly to create an airplane that takes Van’s idea of ‘Total Performance’ into the utility category. The RV-15 has the ideal mix of very low stall speeds and docile handling that backcountry pilots love with unexpectedly high cruise speeds. The RV-15 is capable of cruising at 140 knots while also feeling comfortable on short, challenging remote airstrips.”
The wing kit, which is so easy to assemble that there will be little need for so-called quickbuild components, is being offered at an introductory price of $19,650. Timelines have been set as follows:
- Tail kits, the next in line, will go on sale in December 2025, with deliveries in March 2026
- Fuselage orders will open in August 2026, with deliveries in October 2026
- Firewall-forward kits will go on sale in August 2026, with deliveries by the end of 2026
- Finish kits will go on sale in November 2026, with deliveries by the end of 2026
Prices for the remaining kits are estimated at $9,000 for the tail kit, $20,000 for the fuselage kit, $13,000 for the firewall-forward kit, and $23,000 for the finish kit.
Sharing virtually no components with any other Van’s RV, the RV-15 embodies new technologies and design concepts for the back country market. Its patented articulated landing gear has proven to take a pounding on rough strips while helping this taildragger model have extremely benign handling qualities. New thinking in the flap design, which has integrated vortex generators hidden during cruise for drag reduction, combines very high lift values with a high-drag configuration to permit short, steep approaches to challenging airstrips.
Van’s will have the next kit segment, for the horizontal and vertical tails, moved into production late in 2025 with deliveries starting in the first quarter of 2026. Work to complete the fuselage design and firewall-forward configuration will take place in early 2026, with those kit deliveries taking place late in the year, fully one year ahead of initial availability estimates for this revolutionary design.
More than 11,000 RVs are flying worldwide, making them the most popular owner-built airplanes ever.
