Sonex Aircraft Brings Back the BD-5J

     On July 10, 2014 the Sonex JSX-2 took flight for the first time. This revolutionary jet takes the home building market to the next level as a kit plane that the customer purchases and builds at their home or shop. This small-single-seat-jet is relatively cheap for it's class and will provide the owner with a whole new home built plane experience. This jet is capable of speeds in excess of 240 mph with a maximum weight of only 1,000 pounds. 

    Sonex has been creating planes for aviation enthusiasts for many years with 5 models currently produced. Until the JSX arrived on the market, Sonex only produced small piston powered planes. Most of their planes were in the $20,000-$60,000 range until the JSX was released. Though Sonex originally expected the new jet to cost only $60,000, the price was released mid-August at a staggering $130,000. Though the price was quite a bit off Sonex's original estimate, many people are still excitedly pre-ordering the kit for it's 2015 release.

    The reason for everyone's excitement on the release of this new toy is it's similarity to the old BD-5J jet that was created in 1971. The BD-5J is the record holder for the World's Smallest Jet. Since only a few BD-5J's remain in existence, their value has gone way higher than almost anyone can afford, that is why the new JSX-2 that is relatively cheap is so appealing to pilots. Both aircraft use the same engine and have similar size and weight characteristics, the key difference on the two is the way their engines are mounted. On the BD-5J, the engine is tucked away under the skin out of site, on the JSX-2, the engine is mounted on top of the fuselage. 

    Although the Sonex jet takes thousands of hours of work and hundreds of thousands of dollars, many future jet pilots are ready to give Sonex their money in exchange for the fun jet. Many people who want to be commercial jet pilots in the future will also show interest in this jet. In order for many airliners to hire pilots, they have to have a certain amount of jet flying time to get the job. Since this jet is about the cheapest jet currently around, pilots might think about investing in this jet to get their required jet flying time.