Welcome to my web site devoted to the building of my Van's RV-7A airplane

This is one of the largest and most exciting projects I have ever started, and it is years in the making. A lot of people ask when it will be finished, and I have continually been saying it will take three years ever since I started over three years ago. The running joke around builders is that it will be finished on Tuesday, but which one is any ones guess. When this plane is finished, it will be a two seat, 200mph (174kt) aerobatic sport plane, with a Lycoming 180hp fuel injected, air cooled engine with a fixed pitch prop. It will have a tip up canopy as seen on the factory demonstrator above. The view out of this cockpit is incredible, and I can not wait to enjoy flying it often.

I am an electrical and computer engineer by day, and a flight instructor by night (and weekends). My flight training started at 4 years old, and work towards my private pilot rating started at 14 with my dad as the instructor. Once college was complete, it was on to all my advanced ratings which now include commercial-instrument single-engine land, single-engine sea, and multi-engine land ratings. That wasn't enough, so it was on to all of the same instructor ratings. Currently I fly out of Portland-Hillsboro (HIO) and other local airports.  If you need a flight review, instrument proficiency check, or want to earn an additional rating, send me an e-mail. I am also a member of the Hillsboro Flying Club, so feel free to ask questions if you live near HIO and are looking for lower cost flying and more flexible scheduling.

The goal of this site is to provide a place for family and friends to keep up with my progress, and to share what worked and didn't with fellow builders. The information and suggestions provided on these pages is not guaranteed to be accurate or the best approach, but I hope it will be helpful and/or entertaining. 

James Jula (jmjula@yahoo.com)   

See Van's page for specifications and more pictures of the RV-7 above: www.vansaircraft.com

The gray color above represents what has been started/finished on my plane.

Last Update(s) 10/21/2007: Rebuilt site, misc. updates

Visits since 2/04/03