I don’t think Van’s Aircraft was trying to be funny when it said its RV-9A is “an airplane that you look forward to landing.” Hopefully, every time a pilot goes up, he or she looks forward to getting it back on the ground. Speaking of the RV-9A, a partially assembled version of this kit airplane is for sale near Charlotte, North Carolina on eBay, with a starting bid of $20,000.

The constructors who did half the work for you are professionals, members of the Experimental Aircraft Association 309. This is their second Van’s RV Experimental Aircraft, the first one was sold on eBay some years ago “to a new owner who completed the construction and has been flying happily since.” The work to date, shown in a walkaround video, looks to a high standard.

The partially completed components include: vertical stabilizer, horizontal stabilizer, wings, fuselage with main gear legs and sliding canopy, rudder, ailerons, flaps and elevators. The buyer gets the original Van’s Aircraft drawings and instruction manual.

The conscientious builders indicate that the plane has so far been built to plans, with no modifications. “The nose gear leg is not included since this depends on your engine choice and other firewall forward details.”

Yes, the plane does not come with an engine, though the makers of this “fast, stable, efficient cross-country machine” say it will take a 118 to 160 horsepower unit, which gives it a 45 miles per hour cruising speed. The prototype had a 118-horsepower Lycoming unit, as seen in the Cessna 152. But the Lycoming 0-320, with 160 horsepower, can be accommodated, making it “a real performance tiger!”

The Van’s RV-9A seats two. The wings are longer and narrower than on earlier Van’s models, allowing it to climb easily on low power and glide a long way. Thousands of both the RV-9 and this RV-9A have been sold and are in the friendly skies. The standard kit sells for $34,550, so maybe a bargain can be had here—but don’t count on it.

A little history here. Founder Richard (Van) VanGrunsven established the company in 1970, and introduced the first aircraft kits in 1973. The first plane was the single-seat RV-3, but some customers said, “What’s the fun in flying by yourself?” So a two-place RV-4 was introduced. In the late 1980s, with the market shifting toward touring, the side-by-side RV-6 came out, followed by the tri-gear RV-6A.

From the brochure: “In 1999, Van’s flew a new airplane emphasizing flying simplicity and efficiency over speed and aerobatics. The side-by-side RV-9A combined an RV-6 cabin with a completely new wing. Intended as an efficient, fun ‘weekend’ flying machine, the RV-9A turned out to be an excellent cross-country airplane as well. A tailwheel version, the RV-9, was introduced in 2002.”

The buyer of this aircraft will have to pick it up locally in Charlotte, North Carolina. The builders bought the wing kit in 2013 and the fuselage kit in 2017. All the construction work has been professionally inspected. The build is photo-documented, but there’s no builders log.

It’s not clear why the builders ran out of steam, but maybe taking planes to this point is how they operate. To finish the airframe, a bunch of parts are needed, including engine, instruments and interior, plus an engine mount, nose gear assembly and a finishing kit. A 20-foot box truck would be a good transporter. Helpful hint: “A cheap way to pack the parts, if no wing cradle is available, is to purchase some rolls of R12 fiberglass insulation and wrap the parts in that. Then after unloading at the destination, donate the insulation to a local Habitat for Humanity or home builder.”