I am interested in flying a homebuilt aeroplane from Greece to the USA and
have it registered to an N number. Does anyone here have any knowledge of
how hard or easy it is to do this? I have concerns like flying it from
country to country in Europe, flying it to Iceland, then Canada, then the
USA, and finally I have question of what to expect once I get it here. What
pitfalls will a DAR place in front of me if I fly a homebuilt here and ask
him to register it and give it an N number. Will he make it difficult,
knowing that I am stuck depending on what he does, or will he evaluate it
fairly and sign off on it. Has anyone done something like this?

Thank you so much.

Simon Ramirez, Aerocanard Builder
Oviedo, FL USA

"S Ramirez" > wrote in message news:rD%Fb.116435<
> What
> pitfalls will a DAR place in front of me if I fly a homebuilt here and ask
> him to register it and give it an N number.

The major pitfall is that a DAR does not register aircraft nor issue N numbers.
You need to do this seperately (and before the DAR comes).

The real question is will he give you the experimental
airworthiness certificate.

As for that, I expect it is the same for trying to bring any aircraft you didn't build
yourself through certification. First you have to convince him that it meets the
requirements for the experimental--amateur built certificate: that it is constructed
primarily for recreation or education. Then he has to believe that it meets acceptable
construction and design practices.

"karel adams" > wrote in message
...
> only some 'hearsay' info:
>
> -) you can certainly reduce the risk by getting the N-number
> BEFORE the actual ferry - there are FAA qualified
> inspectors in Western Europe though perhaps not in Greece
>
> -) flying across the Atlantic is a great challenge
> it has certainly been done in a "europa" homebuilt
> but that is not a microlight
> to my unexperienced eye, icing and headwinds
> are the main risks and you should take them VERY serious
>
> -) make a very detailed list of equipment you'll
> need to carry, then check how much fuel you can still add
> at the very least you'll want a raft, ELT, food, heating, ...
>
> -) ISTR that the Greenland authorities will make you
> pay for all their airports on your flight plan, not
> only the one you use but also your alternates
>
> -) disassembling your bird and shipping her in a
> container will certainly be cheaper and safer
> but of course a lot less glorious
> You might consider "cutting up the pear"
> by flying her to Ireland or Scotland or so
> or maybe even the Azores islands
> then crossing the Atlantic by boat.
>
> My two eurocents....
> karel

Karel,

I appreciate your two eurocentavos. The last piece of advice sounds like
the way to go, especially if the airplane is given an airworthiness
certificate (as Ron correctly pointed out) in Europe by a DAR.

The airplane in question is a Defiant, a twin engine (push-pull), and I feel
confident that it will make the journey across the Atlantic as it has plenty
of power and redundancy. The airplane is superbly built, and I have great
confidence that it would pass an airworthiness inspection and make the trip
no problem. What I don't have confidence in is the politics involved in
that inspection. By getting it an N number, registration and airworthiness
certificate while the craft is in Europe, that would be a non-issue.

The issue then becomes cost of shipping it across the Atlantic, including
insurance. Does anyone here know how much it would cost to ship such an
aircraft across the Atlantic from England to the good ol' USofA?

Thank you so much.

Simon Ramirez, Aerocanard Builder
Oviedo, FL USA