The three-brother team of Keegan, River, and Ryley Karl came up with the idea to develop a better composite kitplane several years ago while helping Ryley to construct a Cozy Mark IV kit airplane shortly after graduation from college. All three have degrees in the fields of aerospace, electrical or mechanical engineering, and they were working full-time as engineers between 2014 and 2017 before quitting their jobs and launching DarkAero, their kitplane company.
DarkAero’s Composite Kitplane to Flight Test in Spring 2020
Key Takeaways:
- The Karl brothers, all engineers, founded DarkAero to develop a composite kitplane that is not only high-performing but also significantly easier to build than existing kits, addressing frustrations encountered during their own kitplane construction.
- Their first model, the DarkAero 1, is designed for impressive performance, targeting a 275 mph cruise speed and 1,700-sm range through a lightweight airframe specifically optimized for the UL Power UL520iS engine.
- A core innovation is simplifying the builder's experience by eliminating complex composite work like filling and sanding; DarkAero pre-fabricates tricky layups and uses a "Hollow Grid" approach, leaving builders to primarily bond, bolt, or rivet sections together.
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