Rare, Fast Plane discovery - The Flying Egg! Hangar Interview about the Questair Venture Spirit

Join me in learning about a really cool experimental plane built by Questair - the Venture Spirit. This plane has unique looks that delivers incredible performance, along with comfort. The retractable gear version has set numerous speed and altitude records.
Learn about this plane and some of the things that make it unique in this detailed owner interview. Please let me know in the comments if you enjoyed this and if you would like to see more of these types of interviews.
If you want more details on this plane, here are some resources I discovered as I researched this video:
Of course - Wikipedia. The source of a couple of images used in this video:
en.wikipedia.o...
Great flight review on one: Pilot Report on Questair Venture -
www.airbum.com/...
"Don't write it off just because its appearance isn't traditional. It may be an egg, but it is one hell of a fast egg!"
Be sure to check out Budd's blog on Substack here: budddavisson.s...
Aero News article on the Questair Venture -
Questair Venture: The 'Egg With Legs' | Aero-News Network
www.aero-news.n...
AOPA Pilot Mag write up Nov 1988 -
198811-1988 Questair Venture Homebuilt.pdf (aeroresourcesinc.com)
www.aeroresour...
Plane and Pilot website on Questair (image used in video) -
www.planeandpi...
Current owners of Questair -
questairventur...
A fun news report from 1988 -
• Questair Venture - PM...

[@beyforghani7962]

So good to see Bruce working on the Spirit again! I helped him work on it a few times. He is my old neighbor and we flow together many times. We had a fantastic adventure flying to Oshkosh from Concord Ca. He is a fantastic pilot! Thanks for sharing.

[@BeverlyHarrah-f1u]

This is Mark Harrah. I owned the first Questair Spirit (SN# 001) that is actually the Blue & Silver one on the cover of Kit Plane magazine shown in this video. I bought it from Don Godwin around the Mid 90’s and sold it to Dan Myers in 2016. I put about 1300 hrs on it. Beautiful flying airplane, never let me down. Rich Gritter taught me how to fly it and Don taught me how to roll it. Don liked to roll everything he flew. Rumor has it he rolled a Cessna Caravan when he owned Atlantic Aero Freight.

[@SilvaAdventures]

That is awesome! Thanks for the history. It is an awesome plane, no doubt.

[@chriso847]

Very interesting video and two nice Cameos by Tim! 👍

[@SilvaAdventures]

I only work with highly paid professionals!

[@edstoybox]

Great video!

[@aldohattonduran5227]

Totally love this plane 🛬🛩️🛩️ shame they're not more of them 😫 thank you! Excelente production

[@SilvaAdventures]

Thanks for kind words. I love the plane, and the story behind it, as well!

[@j.d.martin7523]

Bobby Jones and me built the very first spirit in Greensboro n.c. in the early nineties built with the guidance of Jim Griswald
We had a great crew

[@SilvaAdventures]

I am sure it was a great plane!

[@larryegilman1]

A few raced at Reno in the Sport class. They were fast. Tommy Rose was killed in a crash that occurred on the home stretch
As designed the horizontal was inadequate, as Tommy’s plane suffered a downward failure that sent the airplane into the ground. Not aware if Questair redesigned the horizontal

[@TDCflyer]

I guess the plans didn't take into consideration ambitious pilots would stuff twice the proposed power into the cowling and go flat out in excess of 450kt, flying right into the wake turbulence of other planes 50ft away.
If you want to do that you'll need to redesign all of the spars accordingly.

[@hadleymanmusic]

Fixed gears safer on this if I remember the mains on the original werent

[@Lee-qp6gf]

I flew in that plane, as a demonstrator, at Sun and Fun when it was new. It was meant to be a simple kit with lower power. Can't remember what engine they meant it to have but certainly not what it has now. I would have thought someone would have produced it again by now as it id a fantastic design and mover.

[@SilvaAdventures]

How cool that you flew it. Hopefully it will be flying again soon….

[@j.d.martin7523]

Lycoming 550G

[@hadleymanmusic]

Could it be a slower motorglider if it had longer wingspan?

[@j.d.martin7523]

Bobby Jones and myself built the very first spirt in Greensboro n.c. at the original questair shop

[@BeverlyHarrah-f1u]

This is Mark Harrah. I bought that Spirit ( N92U ) from Don Godwin in the mid 90’s. It is the Blue & Silver Spirit on the cover of the 92 Kitplane magazine. I flew it for almost 20 years. SN # 001. I think I put about 1300 hrs. On it. It never failed me. Beautiful flying airplane. Best I ever flew. Sold it to Jim Myers the first of 2016. Jim Cook flew in and picked it up. Hopefully they are taking good care of it.

[@graemecatty9921]

A month to take the engine out? A few coffee and biscuits breaks in that time I'm sure.

[@ez3333]

🌹

[@ProPilotPete]

80kt final is fast, wonder what the stall speed is?

[@SilvaAdventures]

Bruce noted 67kt stall speed.

[@fly-n-m9445]

80 kts would be 1.2 vso? Perfect.

[@hadleymanmusic]

Is it close coupled?

[@hadleymanmusic]

Haha 6.6????? bouts knots per wheel slower when he said 20 i was thinkin 3 gear hmmmmmmm

[@SilvaAdventures]

I don’t think he was being exact.

[@hadleymanmusic]

@@SilvaAdventures neither is my math