What is a kit airplane versus a plans-built airplane?
Kit airplanes are aircraft designs that are sold as a package of parts and subassemblies to be assembled by the owner. They are primarily a market response to the lack of new and affordable type-certified production aircraft. The kit attempts to strike a balance between those desiring a finished airplane, versus those wanting to build. They also allow people to build a new aircraft when they may not possess the time or ability to build from scratch. Cost of a kit airplane is generally higher than that of plans-built. The “plans-built” aircraft is scratch built from a set of engineering drawings only, the builder makes most all of the parts from raw materials. This was the “original” form of homebuilding. These take longer to complete than a kit airplane, but can also be less expensive and more rewarding to those who enjoy building. For the popular designs, quite a few prefab parts do exist, especially the ones that are too difficult or costly to fabricate yourself. The term “kitplane”
