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RV-15

Back Country, the RV Way

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Performance & Utility
Low weight, superb utility, short-field capabilities... total performance.
Back Country
Go to new places, do new things. And, take stuff with you and back home again.
It's Almost Here!
Sure, we've taken some time to get the RV Feel into the RV-15 but it'll be worth the wait. Kits coming soon!

Spring 2025 Update

Work has been progressing steadily on the revolutionary RV-15 high-wing back-country aircraft from Van’s. Since its first reveal, the RV-15 has been significantly flown, evaluated, and re-engineered in search of excellence.

As of today, it sports a new tail with a conventional elevator/horizontal stabilizer combination on a longer tailcone, while the control system has been significantly changed from the engineering test article. We always knew it would, since that version was meant to get flying quickly so that the handling qualities could be evaluated and refined. After these changes, the RV-15 is now harmonized in pitch and roll to deliver the signature “RV Feel,” with control forces tailored to its backcountry mission.  

In early May 2025, the RV-15 reached a significant milestone by passing a wing-load test that validated the engineering models. Moreover, the RV-15 prototype is being built with large integral fuel tanks in the wings, totaling 60 gallons. This configuration of tank, which is entirely between the forward and aft spars, was chosen because it’s strong and has proven to be durable in other aircraft across the general aviation fleet. 

A set of wings representative of what will be offered to builders is under construction now with the goal of allowing the RV-15 to fly to EAA AirVenture this July.  

Our Latest RV-15 Videos:

RV-15
Coming first. With the little wheel (it's all relative) mounted on the back.
RV-15A
Trike backcountry? Sure, at some point. Timeframe TBD.

Highlights

Wing on top, looks amazing, great handling, and some awesome features …

The aircraft you see on these pages is the RV-15 Engineering Test Prototype. It is not the final design. What we are learning from the prototype aircraft will be incorporated into the final kit design.

What we’ve shared publicly thus far:

  • High-wing
  • Backcountry capable
  • All-metal
  • Control sticks
  • Tailwheel aircraft planned first, tricycle to follow
  • An all-new gear and suspension system for the main and tail gear
  • Planned to carry two real people and lots of “stuff”
  • Yes, we hope to offer a float-plane option at some point

The design is meant to accommodate four-cylinder Lycoming engines from 180HP to 220HP. The engineering test prototype has a four-cylinder Lycoming IO-390 EXP-119 engine that outputs around 220HP and drives an 80-inch composite Hartzell Trailblazer propeller. While we have not yet determined the actual speeds or useful load for the final design, we have established design targets of 140kts and at least 900 pounds, with the room to load two full-size mountain bikes in the baggage area without having to completely disassemble them (just remove the front wheel like you would when mounting to a car or truck bike rack).

An airplane that will get you there reasonably quickly, get down and stopped and then back off the ground in short distances, while letting you carry all the stuff you need to answer the question, “Okay so we’re here, what are we gonna do?” Fish, bike, camp, hunt, whatever you can think of. You choose.

That’s what the RV-15 is about. We’re excited to share more with you soon.

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