Volunteers Begin Building This Year’s One Week Wonder at AirVenture

As the show opened on Monday, so did the crates of components for the Sonex Waiex-B, which is being built by a small army of red-shirt-clad volunteers.

The Sonex is a metal aircraft that comes in component form. One of the selling points of the design is that because it is a metal aircraft, you can walk away from it for a time and don’t have to worry about glue going bad. 

The design under construction, the Waiex-B, is based on the original Waiex, but features a more spacious cockpit and has a center Y-stick option, electrically actuated flaps, and an increased fuel capacity. According to the Sonex company, this Waiex will be the first to utilize a factory design installation of a Rotax 912 iS powerplant.

One of the EAA members supervising the project is Jeff Schultz from Dixon, Missouri, who has made a career and a web-presence out of building Sonex aircraft. Schultz's 20-year-old son, Isaac, is part of the build team, as well. 

Visitors to the build center on Aeroshell Square can watch the aircraft take shape, vote on a paint scheme, and try riveting. Owen Bain, a 14-year-old from Dallas, Texas, gave it a shot. He said he plans to build his own airplane—and start flying lessons when he’s old enough.