Building a Pitts Model 12 Aerobatic Biplane (7 year project)
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It started as a pile of sticks carefully nailed together into a series of individual wing ribs.
Ribs are carefully attached to structural spars.
Building the wings.
Wing ribs hanging on the wall ready for the next step.
Wing with leading edge.
Wings
A fuel tank will be installed inside the wing. These are straps to hold it down.
Fuselage skeleton.
Attaching the tail and rudder.
Wings must be attached, carefully aligned and removed again.
Skeleton wings are carefully aligned with skeleton fuselage, then removed for covering.
Notice the top wing fuel tank now covered.
Cross bracing for wings
Push rods installed inside wings to move ailerons.
Aileron mechanism working.
Seats and control sticks installed.
Cockpit interior
Attaching the powerful radial engine.
The wings are covered with fabric. One side is covered.
The wings are covered with fabric
After wings are covered with fabric they must be sewn to the ribs.
The fuselage gets a canopy
Detail of fuselage before being covered
Covering fuselage
Installing hoses
Firewall forward
Systems
Time to move the project from the garage to the airport hangar.
The Pitts airplane has been moved to the hangar
Lewis hopes there is a light at the end of the building tunnel
Cowling the engine.
Adding the propeller.
So close I can almost taste it.
The plane is finally finished. Seven years in the making.
Completed Pitts Model 12 aerobatic biplane. Gorgeous!
Lewis built this beautiful Pitts Model 12 aerobatic biplane. The project took seven years to complete. While building this project he was also building a house and writing a book. The plane has now been flying for 10 years and going strong.
This is our daughter Sarah demonstrating how it feels to fly aerobatics in the Pitts.
