(March 2012) A couple of years ago, I started flying a Piper Cub, and I have accumulated a good number of tailwheel hours in various types of antique taildraggers. As my time built, I had the opportunity to get some time in some pretty unusual aircraft, which is neat for a 23-year-old kid who is deeply in love with aviation. In one recent instance, I learned a lot, and definitely got more than I bargained for.
It all started when one of my high school buddies called me and told me he was looking for a light taildragger in which to build some time. I gave him my two cents about what aircraft to look for. A while later, he called me and told me he had found a Kitfox that was a good buy and located nearby. He asked me if I would ferry the airplane with him the 50 or so miles across Houston to the airport at which he had a hangar set up. Initially, I was uneasy about flying a homebuilt, especially one I had zero time in and minimal familiarity with. But, he called me a week later and said it had passed the pre-buy inspection and that he and an instructor had flown it around for a while with no problems. It also had passed an annual inspection a few months previously. Based on the information, I decided to help him out.
