--- product_id: 12937903 title: "Flying on Your Own Wings: A Complete Guide to Understanding Light Airplane Design" brand: "chris heintz" price: "276 zł" currency: PLN in_stock: true reviews_count: 9 url: https://www.desertcart.pl/products/12937903-flying-on-your-own-wings-a-complete-guide-to-understanding store_origin: PL region: Poland --- # Flying on Your Own Wings: A Complete Guide to Understanding Light Airplane Design **Brand:** chris heintz **Price:** 276 zł **Availability:** ✅ In Stock ## Quick Answers - **What is this?** Flying on Your Own Wings: A Complete Guide to Understanding Light Airplane Design by chris heintz - **How much does it cost?** 276 zł with free shipping - **Is it available?** Yes, in stock and ready to ship - **Where can I buy it?** [www.desertcart.pl](https://www.desertcart.pl/products/12937903-flying-on-your-own-wings-a-complete-guide-to-understanding) ## Best For - chris heintz enthusiasts ## Why This Product - Trusted chris heintz brand quality - Free international shipping included - Worldwide delivery with tracking - 15-day hassle-free returns ## Description Flying on Your Own Wings: A Complete Guide to Understanding Light Airplane Design ## Images ![Flying on Your Own Wings: A Complete Guide to Understanding Light Airplane Design - Image 1](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/71nkeqLq4ZL.jpg) ## Customer Reviews ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 5.0 out of 5 stars A very detailed book *by R***D on Reviewed in the United States on October 23, 2023* This book is addressed to those who are interested in building their own experimental full-size aircraft, and not being aeronautical engineers. It includes graphics and an explanation for all parts of the airplane, plus a full review of Math and building materials and how their profiles affect its resistance to different forces they will be facing in an aircraft. A good book to have handy. ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 5.0 out of 5 stars Flying on your own wings *by R***R on Reviewed in the United States on January 28, 2011* I bought this book shortly after I bought one of Chris Heintz airplanes, an already built example of his first kit design actually, the Zenair Zenith which was later named the CH-200, which was a quite popular two-seat, plans built airplane offered by Chris' company, (Zenair Aircraft Company) from the mid-seventies till the very early '90's. The CH-200 is the ancestor to all the other Zenair and most of the current Zenith models.The book starts with discussion of basic engineering and physics principles and evolves into a rather thorough explaination of almost all the various areas of light aircraft design and development, from the propeller to the rudder. All through the book there are little snippets of Chris' personal thoughts on subjects aeronautical as well as (sometimes) philosophical. Whether those non-aeronautical things should actually be there might be argued but I liked them because they gave me a better understanding of the kind of man who designed the airplane I bought. It also explained some of the reasons of why the CH-200 was designed the way it was and is.Chris Heintz appears to be a talented, generous and genuinely nice guy and that comes out in the book. The pages sometimes brush only the surface and other times, they go into more than enough detail but always they are an interesting read, although to really understand it all you will need a decent background in mathematics, or at least be willing to learn to understand it since the book is chock full of formulas and other math related data. It might be a little intimidating for the casual reader but, if you really want to get an "understanding of light airplane design", this is what you need to read to get it.I liked the book and it was not only a good read, it also doubles as reference material.For anyone who owns, flys (or is currently building) a Zenair or Zenith airplane, this book should be required reading. ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐ 4.0 out of 5 stars Good overview of the light aircraft design process *by R***N on Reviewed in the United States on December 9, 2010* This book starts with an introduction by and of Chris Heintz, who is well-known in experimental aircraft circles for designing a variety of successful homebuilt aircraft. This introduction serves you well as an introduction to the man, which will come in handy later as you read the book (I'll explain--read on...) The book reads as a primer of the light aircraft design process from start to finish, with chapter one starting off with basic mathematics. I mean *really* basic, like roman numerals, the greek letters, etc. You quickly realize this is not going to be your typical aircraft design book. It then moves on to aerodynamics, stability and control, flutter, structural design analysis, human factors, design and performance estimates, and ends with how to flight-test a prototype aircraft.The book dives from general concept to detailed analysis and back to general concept pretty much at-will. It looks and reads more like a large collection of lecture notes and chalkboard analysis, with an occasional personal philosophy thrown in. And not just aircraft design philosophies; for example, pg. 53 has this paragraph after the discussion of gravity: "Note: although the gravitational pull of the planets does not affect aircraft design, its action on the life forces (plants, animals, humans) and soul forces (animals and humans) is not much recognized in our western culture. Some cultures are much more attuned to this..." Like I said, read the introduction lest you mistake Mr. Heintz for your standard conservative engineering type :-)Personal philosophies aside, I did find this book easy and enjoyable to read. The math/physics introduction at the start seems overly long, but it really does cover in a very nutshell form all the various concepts you should be aware of before designing an aircraft (even compound interest calculations for those who need to borrow money from the bank to finance their dream! Probably not a good idea, but I digress...) You would want to back up all the calculations here with the much more detailed and dense volumes like Bruhn's handbook etc, but as an overall checklist of how to design a light aircraft it really is quite comprehensive. The only reason I give it four stars, not five, is the number of typos that appear throughout, like "Load ditribution" as a section title on pg. 133. It gives one a little less confidence in the equations, but again, you'd be wise to double (triple) cross-check them against other references anyway. This is a book along the lines of  Simplified Aircraft Design for Homebuilders  and not an engineering textbook. Approach it as such, and it's a great read. --- ## Why Shop on Desertcart? - 🛒 **Trusted by 1.3+ Million Shoppers** — Serving international shoppers since 2016 - 🌍 **Shop Globally** — Access 737+ million products across 21 categories - 💰 **No Hidden Fees** — All customs, duties, and taxes included in the price - 🔄 **15-Day Free Returns** — Hassle-free returns (30 days for PRO members) - 🔒 **Secure Payments** — Trusted payment options with buyer protection - ⭐ **TrustPilot Rated 4.5/5** — Based on 8,000+ happy customer reviews **Shop now:** [https://www.desertcart.pl/products/12937903-flying-on-your-own-wings-a-complete-guide-to-understanding](https://www.desertcart.pl/products/12937903-flying-on-your-own-wings-a-complete-guide-to-understanding) --- *Product available on Desertcart Poland* *Store origin: PL* *Last updated: 2026-05-30*