How Much Is This Kit Airplane Really Going To Cost?

I am a detail-oriented person and always like to know the cost of a project before getting started, as was the case before building my RV-14A. I did my due diligence and had a good estimate of what the airplane would cost, or so I thought. One day, about three years into the build, I was in the workshop reviewing my progress on the fuselage. I distinctly remember lamenting to my wife about how much money we had spent on the airplane project thus far and feeling guilty about how much I had underestimated the cost. Apparently, I wasn’t the only one. It seemed like every week there was another builder selling a partially completed airplane kit. I suspect they were either overwhelmed by the magnitude of the project or, more likely, they had run out of money. Fortunately, I had an understanding wife and a good job, both of which allowed me to continue and successfully complete the airplane.

Building the RV-14A was so enjoyable that I often wish I could build another, applying everything I learned from building the first one. Given my age and financial situation, I know that is not possible. So, I decided to write a book, titled Building a Kit Airplane: Everything I Wish I Knew Before I Started. My intent was to document this knowledge so that new builders can take advantage of what I learned. Several chapters of the book are dedicated to estimating the cost of the kit airplane project. The book explains each line item of the estimates in great detail. Because kit airplane component prices have fluctuated wildly of late, the book does not contain actual dollar values. Instead, worksheets are provided to help the reader research current prices for their own cost estimates.

The goal of this article is to provide financial details for my project to illustrate how and why I underestimated the cost so badly. Why did I underestimate the cost? It was not due to price increases. I simply didn’t know what I didn’t know.

A kit airplane “project” comprises more than just an airplane. The project also includes the purchase of tools, expenses required to prepare the pilot and the airplane for airworthiness, purchase or rental of a hangar, and future recurring costs. Although this example is for a Van’s RV-14A, the following cost estimating worksheets may be applied to any kit aircraft with appropriate modifications.

The dollar values presented in these examples are what they cost me during the years between 2017 to 2022. These figures are now obsolete and should not be used to estimate the cost of a current or future airplane project. An RV-14A can no longer be built for the dollar values shown in these examples due to significant price increases. Instead, the line-item costs should be researched and updated for an individual’s own project. After completing these worksheets, one may then see the big picture and understand the financial commitment required for the entire kit airplane project. Spoiler alert: There is nothing cheap about owning an airplane. Be prepared for “sticker shock”! I would much rather be informed of the full cost of the project up front rather than in the latter half when funding may be running low.

Consider my example. When first researching the cost of the kit airplane, I came across sources on the internet that suggested the cost of a kit airplane can be estimated by using the “Rule of Thirds.” The airframe kit will be roughly one-third of the cost, the engine and propeller will be one-third of the cost, and the avionics will make up the remaining one-third. So, off to AirVenture I went to talk to Van’s, Lycoming, Hartzell, and Garmin. Upon returning home, I sat down and calculated some pretty optimistic numbers as shown below.

Wow! I could own a brand-new, IFR-capable, high-performance airplane for $115,000! Wishful thinking.

So where did I go wrong? Like most builders, when I built my airplane, I didn’t order the complete airplane kit at once, but rather one section at a time over a period of four years. Price increases were not accounted for in my original estimates. I also neglected to account for the price of shipping heavy crates from Oregon to New Hampshire. A good estimate would use the current price of the first kit and then add a yearly price increase to every other kit. The kit manufacturer can provide an estimate for shipping each kit.

So, my actual airplane “kit” costs were as follows:

Well, that wasn’t so bad; I only underestimated the kit cost by $10,000. Oh, but wait … there’s more!

I eventually discovered the “Rule of Thirds” is a poor way to estimate aircraft cost. There are many decisions one must make that will impact the project cost significantly. Will the airplane be a slow-build or quickbuild? Will the airplane have a fixed-pitch or constant-speed propeller? Will the engine be new, used (if you can find one), certified, or experimental? IFR- or VFR-equipped panel? Will the paint be DIY or a beautiful Evoke paint job? Also, there’s another “one-third” that I had not accounted for—all the other components that were not included in the kit, such as lights, seats, and carpet. And then there was “feature creep,” the optional stuff such as a backup alternator, center console, and paint. The “Rule of Thirds” may actually become the “Rule of Fourths” or even the “Rule of Fifths” depending on options.

For the first three years, I had only purchased the airframe kits and tools. I then discovered there were other items required to complete the airplane that were not included in the Van’s RV-14 kits. Below is the actual list and pricing information for the items that were purchased separately for my airplane. Some of these items were purchased from Van’s, even though they weren’t included in the kit, and others were purchased from various sources such as Aircraft Spruce & Specialty, SteinAir, and The Home Depot (just kidding). Other kit manufacturers, such as Kitfox, RANS, Sonex, etc., may or may not include these items in their kits.

I purchased a prefabricated fuselage harness, which cost a pretty penny, but chose to wire the panel myself and saved about $16,000. My airplane has an IFR-capable panel, which I had accounted for in my original airplane estimate. However, there were other components necessary to complete the IFR package, such as antennas, autopilot servos, landing lights, navigation lights, etc. And then, “Wait, what? … Seats and seat belts are not part of the kit?!” Nope. Since everyone wants different colors and materials, Van’s does not provide them as part of the kit. There was also over $4,000 worth of components, less than $100 each, that were too numerous to itemize.

And then, there’s all the stuff that may or may not be considered optional:

I chose to exclude the exhaust from the Van’s Firewall Forward Kit because I didn’t like the way it was routed through the tunnel at the time, so Van’s deducted the cost of the exhaust from the kit (I don’t think they do that anymore). Instead, an exhaust was ordered from Vetterman. I chose to paint the airplane myself, another project in and of itself, so the PPG paint is included in this list.

So now how does that original estimate look when compared to the actual cost?

The original $115,000 estimate grew to $160,496 by the time the airplane was completed. But that’s just the cost of the airplane. (Note: Due to price increases, my RV-14A would cost upwards of $230,000 today. If you were to add another $25,000 for a quickbuild kits, $16,000 for a prefabricated panel wiring harness, and $40,000 for a deluxe paint job, that number quickly exceeds $300,000.)

Remember, this is a project, not just an airplane. What about tools? I originally thought $2,000 would cover the cost of tools, since I already had a well-equipped workshop. Wrong again.

And then there’s electrical tools. Since I chose to wire my own panel to save money on a wiring harness, this meant I had to purchase a few expensive crimping tools. Even if I had not wired the panel there was still a considerable amount of wiring work that required most of the tools in the following list.

I decided to forgo a $40,000 professional paint job and did it myself? This saved a significant amount of money, but more equipment was required. Here’s what I spent on painting equipment, much of which was for the construction of a temporary makeshift paint booth.

One of the beautiful things about the experimental aviation world is that you can do your own maintenance. If you build the plane yourself, apply for and receive a Repairman Certificate, or take a Repairman Inspection course under the new MOSAIC rules, you can also do the annual condition inspection. You’ll need more than a checklist and a pencil, so more tools are required. Here is what I spent on maintenance tools, not including some tools that I already had.

I significantly underestimated the cost of tools and equipment accumulated during the project. The total cost of aircraft building tools, electrical tools, paint booth, painting equipment, and aircraft maintenance tools added up to a staggering seven times my original two-thousand-dollar estimate.

Hint: To save some time and a little bit of money, a nearly complete airframe fabrication kit (metalworking tools) may be purchased from Cleaveland Tools. Used tools can be purchased from eBay, Craigslist, or fellow builders.

Once I completed building and painting the airplane and moved the pieces out of the workshop and into the garage, I needed to think about getting the airplane to the airport to prepare the airplane and myself for airworthiness. You guessed it, more money.

I really didn’t want to put that beautiful new RV on a tiedown out on the ramp where the sun, weather, and wildlife would destroy the new paint job. I also wanted to do my own maintenance and that required a place to do the work. That meant either renting or buying a hangar. I was fortunate enough to find one to purchase about two years before I even finished the airplane. Since hangars don’t often go up for sale, I jumped at the opportunity. I anticipated the price of hangars would only go up, so I thought it would be a good investment. Given that hangar rent is $500 to $600 per month, the hangar purchase will pay for itself in 10 to 15 years.

When I finally moved the airplane to the airport, I was shocked to learn that I could barely push the airplane up a small incline and over a one-inch lip into the hangar. It would be impossible if the ramp was icy. So, off to AirVenture I went on a quest to find a tug. Like I needed an excuse to go to Oshkosh!

So now the airplane is finally flying and has a nice home in a hangar. I only have to buy gas now, right? I wish. There are annual recurring expenses that don’t go away until the airplane is sold. Remember when I said there is nothing cheap about owning an airplane? I originally estimated these costs would be about $10,000 per year. I used to be the treasurer of a flying club, so I had a pretty good handle on what the annual costs for an airplane would be. I was only 20% off. Every situation is different.

Phew! I think that is it. So, after summing up all the previous tables, here are my actual RV-14A project costs.

Hmmmm? That flying club with $100/month dues and an hourly rate of about $90 for a Cessna 172 wasn’t so bad (but not nearly as much fun!)

My total project costs were about double what I had originally estimated. Was it worth it? Yeah!

Closing Thoughts

I once heard Burt Rutan say that the average kit airplane project takes eight years and 1.6 wives. I hope that disclosing my actual project costs will help others better estimate their kit airplane project costs and improve their chances of staying married.

If after you come up with your own estimates you discover that a kit airplane project is cost prohibitive, rather than giving up on the dream, maybe you should consider a partnership. Just a thought.

On a positive note, hangar real estate and aircraft have appreciated significantly over the past few years. Unlike an automobile, my airplane is now worth much more than when it was new. I figure someday when I choose to sell the airplane, hangar, and all the tools, I’ll make back every penny plus maybe even a profit.