• Structural Testing Complete

• 2018 Epic Fly-In

• Desert Aerials

• Customer Spotlight

• Flight Support

• Flight Training

• Partner Showcase

• Amazing Americas Tour

IN THIS ISSUE:

EPIC AIRCRAFT has successfully completed E1000 structural testing, concluding one of the more demanding phases of its type certification (TC) program.

The company anticipates receiving FAA Type Inspection Authorization (TIA) later this month. TIA is a crucial precursor to type certification, as it confirms the aircraft design, structural and flight test results demonstrate compliance with FAA regulations.

It also signifies confidence in the program by allowing FAA pilots on board the aircraft to conduct the final phases of conformity inspections and flight testing. Certification remains on schedule for Q4-2018.

“We are on the final stretch,” confirms CEO, Doug King. “We have flown over

600 total hours in our two flight test articles, meeting most of the required airworthiness, performance and handling characteristics. We are ready to conclude this final phase of FAA-conformed flight testing, keeping us on track for TC later this year.”

The E1000 manufacturing team is now shifting focus entirely toward production certification to support planned volumes of 50 aircraft per year. Epic will begin converting the earliest of its 85 reservations into sales contracts later this summer in preparation for initial customer deliveries, which are scheduled to begin shortly after TC.

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Photo: Jessica Ambats

JOURNALSSUMMER 2018

E1000 STRUCTURAL TESTING COMPLETE!

Don’t miss this year’s 5th Annual Epic Odyssey Fly-In, scheduled for September 6-9th, at Brasada Ranch in beautiful Bend, Oregon! Celebrate Epic’s impending E1000 type certification with fellow owners, depositors, and partners during an aviation-focused weekend of education, entertainment, and fun!

This year’s theme is ‘Wild Wild West’, so slap on your hat, dust off your boots, strap on your spurs and kick up your heels for a rootin’ tootin’, rip roarin’ Epic-style shindig! Holler if you need more scoop on the planned shenanigans.

SPECIAL GUESTS: AARON TIPPIN & FAMILYEpic is thrilled to welcome country music star and aviation enthusiast, Aaron Tippin, along with his talented wife, Thea, and singing/songwriting son, Tom, as our special guests for the Thursday night Dinner on the Range. Commercial, multi-engine and instrument rated, as well as a certified flight instructor, Aaron received his private pilot at age 17. He then passed his love of flying onto both his sons, signing each of their logbooks when they in turn earned their private pilot. In fact, Tom completed his first solo flight on his 16th birthday – but did it in grand style, flying three vintage aircraft in a row: a 1946 Piper J-3 Cub, a 1942 Stearman and a 1943 T-6 Texan advanced trainer! Please join us in welcoming this talented trio of musicians and aviators to our Epic Fly-In! And be sure to ask Aaron about his ‘electrifying’ experiences - as well as his exhilarating performances.

Aaron, Thea and Tom Tippin standing next to a 1942 Stearman.

Brasada Ranch

2018 EPIC ODYSSEY FLY-IN

WANTEDYOUR ATTENDANCE AT THE

SCHEDULE OF EVENTS:Wednesday, September 5th, 2018

Early Arrivals/Optional Activities

Thursday, September 6th, 2018

• Morning Arrivals/Registration

• Refreshments/Tours/Photos

• Dinner on the Range Special Guest: Aaron Tippin Family

Friday, September 7th, 2018

Speaker Sessions

• Epic Aircraft Update (Doug King)

• PT6 Engine Insights (Pratt & Whitney Canada)

• Better Decision Making (James Albright, Code 7700)

• Weather Strategies & Lessons Learned (Paul Suffern, NTSB)

• The ‘Epic Challenge’ (Peter King & Peter Stiles)

• WILD WILD WEST Theme Dinner Special Guest: High Street Band

Saturday, September 8th, 2018

Speaker Sessions

• Mastering the Garmin G1000 (Peter King)

• Thinking Small to Avoid Big Mistakes (Rod Machado)

• Dinner in the Barn Special Guest: Todd Haaby

Sunday, September 9th, 2018

Tours/Departures/Optional Activities

BEST TUGS Best Tugs now offers an all-new ‘Safety Susan’ feature, specifically designed for the heavy-duty nose gear of Epic LT & E1000 aircraft. This ‘Safety Susan’, like all Best Tugs products, sets the industry standard in innovation, ease of use and durability. The fully-electric system, combined with a pivoting tray, enables you to hook up and reposition your aircraft without any turn limitations, straps, or winches, allowing for quick, easy, reliable movement every time. For more information, call Best Tugs at 800-914-2003 or email to: sales@besttugs.com.

JETLOAN CAPITAL - AIRCRAFT FINANCINGFinancing an aircraft is unlike any other transaction. In fact, the aviation financing industry has changed dramatically since the 2008 recession. Traditional lenders have exited the space and new funding sources have emerged. This dynamic landscape makes it is essential to partner with a specialized lender, with the relationships, knowledge and experience to support your particular needs.

Epic Aircraft has teamed with JetLoan Capital to support our LT and E1000 customers. With over thirty years of experience and 1000 transactions completed, JetLoan offers relationships with over 100 financial institutions, including banks, leasing companies and private equity sources. Their full range of services include financial review, proposal, credit underwriting, documentation and closing/funding. For more information, contact JetLoan at 561-717-2121 or email to: info@jetloancapital.com.

PARTNER SHOWCASE

Photos: Jessica Ambats

Check out these stunning photos from our three-day photo shoot on location in Monument Valley, Utah and Lake Powell, Arizona, with renowned aerial photographer, Jessica Ambats. Braving sub-freezing temperatures during the 4 am sunrise shoots while strapped in the ‘doorless’ Bonanza A36, Jessica and her photo crew exceeded all expectations! Kudos also to Epic formation pilot, Mike Kloch! Not even wild horses traversing the runway could deter the team’s enthusiasm for getting the best shots!

Special thanks to Galen Manternach for the use of his beautiful aircraft, sporting Epic’s new logo! Check out the NEWS/VIDEO page at EpicAircraft.com for the ‘behind the scenes’ documentary of the shoot, produced by the talented team at Tucker/Hess Productions. By the way, the Tucker part of the team is Sean Tucker’s daughter, Tara, who partners with her husband, Brandon Hess.

CUSTOMERSPOTLIGHT:

Doug and Gayle DeHaan are owner/operator/builders of the beautiful Epic LT N822DG. Both pilots, they split their time between Florida and Bend, Oregon. They also own a Cessna 182 King Katmai for their backcountry adventures. Here are some excerpts from our recent conversation.

How did you first discover Epic?At the time, we were flying a Piper Matrix. But we really wanted something faster, that could get above the weather and carry more payload. So we started researching all the options and discovered Epic.

Why was Epic the right aircraft for you?When we saw Epic’s performance characteristics, how much it could carry, and the price, we were sold. It was also one of the only aircraft that can comfortably accommodate Doug, who is 6’5” tall. Plus, it was an added bonus to actually spend time

building our own airplane and getting to know Bend.

How has Epic enhanced your lifestyle?The Epic totally enables our lifestyle. We have homes in both Florida and Oregon, plus family in Michigan, and friends around the country. We can go coast to

coast with just one fuel stop, fully loaded with passengers and luggage. We can fly anywhere, quickly and comfortably, get into big and small airports, on our own schedule, with our dog, Biscuit. It’s especially nice to fly our parents with us, who are in their 80’s and 90’s, and have a difficult time flying commercially. So it helps bring our family together, too.

What’s your favorite feature of your Epic?The payload!! We regularly go to Utah, packed full of passengers, luggage and ski equipment with no problem. The line guys are always amazed at how much we pull out of that plane after landing. We actually used the Epic to move our son and most of his belongings, including two cats, from Minnesota to Oregon. It was so fully packed you could hardly get into the plane, but it still wasn’t over gross!

Any favorite Epic stories? The plane certainly attracts lots of attention! When we first started flying our Epic, everyone from the line guys to Air Traffic Control would ask us what type of plane we were flying. Now they more often recognize it as an Epic but are always impressed to see one in person. We flew into Sebring, Florida once to visit the AirCam factory and their head mechanic commented ‘that is the best-looking airplane I have ever seen’.

Doug and Gayle DeHaan

Biscuit sitting right seat

“ We love having access to smaller, remote airports.”

EPIC FLIGHT SUPPORT

EPIC FLIGHT TRAINING

Epic Flight Support offers the following Epic LT upgrades. Call for more information.

• Garmin G5 Standby Instrument Compass Replacement: Providing a true backup system, with superior compass technology and internal battery backup, for improved safety and peace of mind.

• Circuit Breaker Relocation: Offering improved accessibility and ease of use.

• Upgrade from Dukes to Enviro Systems Automatic Pressurization Outflow System: Offering superior technology, ease of use and support.

• Timed Light Switch Installation: Allows cabin lights to be turned on at the cabin door, lights automatically turn off after a specified period of time, or via a switch on the instrument panel. A great option for the avid or occasional night flyer!

• Hartzell 5-Blade Propeller: If your prop is closing in on an overhaul, or you’re interested in the performance and looks of the 5-blade, we’d be happy to discuss an upgrade.

Coming Soon: Custom Instrument Panel Design: Consider upgrading your instrument panel to a custom design, leveraging the Garmin G3X Touchscreen EFIS system.

Looking Ahead: The ADS-B Out deadline is January 1, 2020. If you have the Garmin G9XX system, this will require a GTX 33 LRU upgrade. Call Epic for more details and information.

Remember: Your safety is our highest priority. Please be sure to ALWAYS complete a thorough pre-flight. Epic has developed its own comprehensive pre-flight checklist, which is available upon request.

And next time you bring your Epic in for service, don’t forget to bring your logbooks, your Garmin loader cards, and a smile!

The Epic Flight Department continues to make steady progress toward the launch of the E1000 flight training program. Supporting those efforts, the team is also creating an innovative, hands-on skills development program, which will allow pilots to more fully prepare in advance for a successful E1000 transition. Further details on all of these programs will be announced at the Fly-In this Fall.

In addition, a newly revised Epic LT Training Supplement is now available that the aligns recommended techniques and procedures more closely with E1000 standard profiles.

Epic LT checklists have also been updated to correspond more closely with those of the E1000. Contact the Flight Training Department to request digital copies of both documents.

Garmin G5 installation

• 2018 Epic LT Training Supplement

• 2018 Epic LT Checklists

NOW AVAILABLE:

• 2018 Epic Pre-Flight Checklists

NOW AVAILABLE:

Plans are progressing for another Epic World Adventure. The Amazing Americas Grand Tour is tentatively scheduled for early spring 2019. The proposed itinerary has the group convening in Florida, before traversing the Caribbean to Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia and Peru. Planned highlights include: the colonial charms of Cartagena, the mysteries of the Amazon, the impressive Iguassu Falls, the granite pillars of Torres del Paine, the exceptional landscapes of the Atacama Desert, the wine regions of Chile, the imposing heights of the Andes and the ancient ruins of Machu Picchu.

The tour will be documented by a professional photo and video crew. Stay tuned for more information coming this fall. While the tour is limited to Epic Aircraft only, E1000 depositors can participate by teaming with an Epic owner (we can help facilitate those introductions).

AMAZING AMERICAS GRAND TOUR:

• Target Timeframe: Feb/Mar 2019

• Aircraft: Limit 8 Epic Aircraft

• Participants: Limit 4-5/Plane (including crew)

• Duration: ~21 Days

• Itinerary & Costs: TBD

AMAZING AMERICAS

GRAND TOUR

EPIC AIRCRAFT LLC

22590 NELSON ROAD

BEND, OREGON 97701

888.FLY.EPIC

541.639.4602

EPICAIRCRAFT.COM

Be sure to get you name on the ‘interested’ list now! Contact Gale Evans at 541-408-2450 or galee@epicaircraft.com.

FOR MORE INFORMATION