Single seat aircraft - what is the appeal?

[flyvulcan]

I am cutting and pasting a post from another thread as I feel this topic deserves its own thread. I'm not sure if I can quote from another thread here, but I'll give it a go.

I think the market would still be fairly limited. One of the factors is that singles simply don't cost much less than two-seaters, if you look at the real world numbers. Nobody is going to save 25% in cost and loosing the option to take someone along.

Unless there is a regulatory advantage (like you had, and like FAR103 nowadays), or it's a sailplane, I don't think anyone is going to sell more than a few dozen single-seat planes a year if it meets the other points (sex appeal). That's just enough to keep a small company profitable, but it's by no means the big market some people see in it.

A huge commercial hurdle is that test-flying a single-seater is a huge issue with a simple, conventional plane. With something unconventional... it's a massive issue.

John Monnet sold over 100 of his single seat Onex kits in its first year of release. The Onex, in my opinion, has only average looks, average performance and average cost. Is it the manufacturers reputation or potential ease of construction that makes it sellable? Why did people buy it and why is it still a good seller? If there are any Onex owners on this forum, I'd really like to know your primary motivations for selecting the Onex?

I admit to having an interest in this area because I am in the process of restoring a Lightning Bug with the potential to offer kits, should the interest be sufficient. I know why I wanted a single seater and that was because of its high performance and (in my eyes) good looks. I also like gentlemans aeros and formation flying. The Bug suits my desires. However, I would really like to know why the Onex has appealed to so many.

Our dear friend Orion's sage advice to me in relation to developing a kit aircraft was "Plan to build one for yourself only. When folks see your aircraft, you will be able to gauge the appeal that it has to others. If it has sufficient and demonstrable interest, aim for low level profitable production (essentially a high quality cottage industry) and any higher level of sales is a bonus".

I'm a bit lucky with the Lightning Bug in that I picked up an affordable aircraft that is being updated and upgraded, which will result in a still very cheap aircraft for me, but we also have all the molds, tooling, spare parts inventory for the Bug which would allow us to commence kit production with minimal startup costs, should the interest be there.

So, for any Onex owners on the forum (or for that matter, any single seater owner), would you mind passing on your motivation for selecting your single seat aircraft?

 

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