6.2.0 Keel

The preliminary work on the keel includes cutting down the rear area (which eventually gets a new cover) to help with the installation of the mechanics for the ailerons, engine controls, etc. A standard Velocity kit does not cut this down, but since I purchased the luxury keel and side stick controller options, it does affect my kit.

Because I purchased the luxury keel and side stick controller options, I need to cut out the rear part of the keel to make room for those options. This gets recovered later.

There is also a front access hole that needs to be cut out. Even though the instruction said to make a cover for this opening (which I did) the factory tells me that the cover really isn’t needed. Darn! And my cover came out so nice. We’ll see - perhaps I’ll use it anyway. In any case, here’s the front access hole.

The top front of the keel also needs to be opened for access to various mechanical "things".

Before the keel is permanently installed, a glideslope antenna needs to be mounted in the floor underneath the keel. This is a fairly simple process but it still takes time!

Fuselage - Glideslope Antenna

Here's another antenna - this one for the glide slope receiver. Most of it gets covered by the keel.

There’s a lot more keel work to be done. See Section 6.4.0 Keel Controls for that process. For now, it’s time to make the front seats!


ui© John Trautschold 2018