After all of the blood (yes, I have drawn blood - several times), sweat (of course), and tears (no, you must be thinking of someone else) I finally reached that milestone. All of the pieces are in place, the plane is essentially complete, and it's time to let the FAA take a look at the final product.
OK, let's get real about this. The FAA doesn't really look at the final product. They allow a Designated Airworthiness Representative (DAR) to charge me about $300 to come out and look at my plane. He'll inspect for general workmanship, look for any errors or omissions that are glaringly obvious. But it's not his job, nor do I expect him to find every mistake or error that I may have made. In the end, I built my RV. I'm the "manufacturer". And I'm responsible.
So really, the DAR is going to come out to my hangar, spend a half hour poking through the inspection ports, the engine compartment, the panel, the wiring, etc, and then he's going to make sure that I have completed my governmental duties. He's going to look at (drum roll please...) the paperwork!!!
Yes! We all know that there is not an airplane out there that can't possibly fly unless the associated paperwork results in three chopped down trees, and weighs more than the airplane that the paperwork represents. So I've done my best to comply. I've documented the major steps involved in building. I've established logbooks to track maintenance and repairs to the airframe, the engine, and the propeller. Yes, three separate logbooks that will follow their respective equipment forever! I've filled out FAA forms in triplicate. I've had forms notarized. I've written notes to myself on paper napkins. I've written notes to myself on my hand (but the FAA won't allow me to submit those notes - something about chopping down trees.)
So now it's all been completed, notarized, and faxed off to the FAA for their approval. After the Beast has been satisfied, they will send the information along to the DAR, who will finish the inspection at my hangar. The DAR will issue two very important documents. First is my Airworthiness Certificate. This document is the FAA's admission that my little project is actually permitted to have air underneath the wheels. The second document is called "operating limitations", and spells out the limitations that the FAA puts on flight of each aircraft. My Op Limits will have two phases.
Phase I will cover the first 40 hours of flight, and require me to fly in a specific geographic area while testing the flight envelope, proving the reliability of the airframe and the engine, etc. Phase II will begin at 40.1 hours, and will allow me to carry passengers, fly VFR day or night, perform aerobatics, and fly anywhere and land at (almost) any airport.
