RAFE, How it all began Part 3.

As AirVenture 2025 kicks off the 10th Anniversary of Rutan Aircraft Flying Experience, we bring you the final part of the three part interview with President and Founder Ryszard Zadow.

Whats next for RAFE?

Membership, funding and flying. None of this happens without people and funding. We’ve never had much in the way of corporate sponsorship but like the Voyager program, we won’t sell out our principles for that.

One of our long term goals was to assemble a team to fly all these airplanes at venues like AirVenture, Sun-n-Fun and others and we’re getting closer to that.  Our act would be what we did at AirVenture 2019 and 2024, have all the Rutan models flying before the crowd at the same time while an announcer narrates the story of each airplane as it makes its low passes down the flight line. We named this the “Rutan Reunion Flight”.

Where else, or who else but RAFE could pull this off?

You think Burt Rutan is that important that he needs to be in the AirVenture airshow every year

Yes! Burt Rutan deserves more than an “honorable mention”. No one is trying to get the Rutan story out in front of the Airshow crowds. The way to keep this legacy alive is not any different than what the warbird community is doing. You have to get those airplanes in the sky, get them before the Airshow spectators and tell the story while their flying in front of the crowd. It’s a real challenge because we’re just a bunch of little airplanes that lack the spectacular sounds of big radial engines and afterburners but the story these little airplanes tell is really important. 

I go to work with aviation professionals who don’t know who Burt Rutan is. I’ll ask them If they’ve ever heard of Space X and of course they’ll say yes. Then I’ll describe how it would be safe to say there wouldn’t be a Space X, the way we know it today, if it hadn’t been for Burt Rutan. The story of the Ansari X prize sets the stage for all of this and we, the little Rutan Homebuilt’s are the foundation of all that, That’s how this becomes way bigger than just a Varieze. The technology that made the Varieze led to Space Ship One. That’s an undeniable truth. The engine that propelled Space Ship One didn’t just launch it above the Karmin line, it launched an industry. This was outside the box thinking like aviation hadn’t seen since Lindbergh. THATs a story no other homebuilt airplane can claim, that’s the story RAFE wants to tell.

That’s thinking pretty big!

Why think small? I look up, Way up! Another thing I’d like to see is Rutan have it’s own building, like IAC has a building. We park our airplanes on “EZ Street” but that’s only because we kind of claimed that a few years ago but if we hadn’t we’d be scattered all over the vast plains of AirVenture without any real identity.  I realize the warbirds are extremely popular but this is EAA and look what homebuilts have versus everyone else. It’s a shame to be overshadowed the way we are and especially Rutan. I hope some good principled corporate exec read this. Lets have a Rutan building just like IAC has. Let’s give Burt the recognition and credit he deserves. Even today, 50 years after the Burt first showed up with the VariViggen, the most far-out little airplane any one in EAA had ever seen at that time, these things look like the future and our entire future depends on futuristic thinkers. Who else in the entire EAA world is more focused on the future? Not RV’s. Not Zeniths, Not Warbirds, No one. You think warbirds make noise? We should be launching ROCKETS at AirVenture because our future generations will be on them headed somewhere! Just ask Elon Musk, lol.

How do you make this work?

People.

For a long time I felt like I was the only one doing anything but the truth is none of

this happens without others participation. As the fleets grown so has the membership. We have such a great group in Houston. One of the things I’m most proud of is how everyone came together and built an enormous airconditioned workshop and meeting room in the Ellington Hangar. If you don’t have a fun place to hang around no one will hang around and its HOT in Houston in the summer! Now we can work in comfort and that leads to camaraderie. People attract people, especially when you’re doing something fun. Our mission includes creating more, new Rutan enthusiasts. It’s a lot easier to do this when you’re not working in a 100 degree hangar.

How does RAFE attract more members?

More flying, more airshows, more fun! The competitions tough. Loud noises, walls of fire, afterburning engines and aerobatics are what sells tickets to Airshow spectators. That’s never going  to change. In the middle of all that should be the Rutan Reunion Flight and the real reason for that is this is the story of how one person’s dreams become reality.

What we’re missing is in that crowd of Airshow spectators is a ten year old kid that’s awestruck by the sensationalism of the show, then walks up to a one of those funny looking airplanes on display and connects the dots. That kid realizes if someone built that cool futuristic looking airplane in their garage maybe they could too! That’s the epiphany. That’s the moment we’re all working for, when that kid realizes they can do this! That might be all it takes to inspire the next innovator, exploiter and achiever. 

Remember I was told I was crazy for doing this, now ten years later we're still here! The world is full of challenges and uncertainty, I hear people saying general aviation will cease to exist because of fuel, because of the environment , because we’ll be replaced by flying robots or the government will regulate us out of the sky. Those things too will never change. There will always be challenges to keep our passions alive but one thing that will NOT change is the human spirit’s desire to fly. It’s in our character, imprinted in our DNA. It will not go away. RAFE will not go away and we’re here in Oshkosh again. Today I landed at AirVenture in Lady Vi ready to do our thing, to “Preserve and Promote Burt Rutan’s homebuilt designs”.  Come see us on EZ Street!

Jenifer, Bibee

RAFE Social Media Director