Thanks for this update video Ryan. Like you, I'm very pleased with Greg's response to this issue. I think they have a crazy amount of work ahead of them to deal with all the various scenarios for each builder. But, I'm confident they will do the right thing by us. I think it will lead to some significant delays but I'm going to try to remain patient as Vans executes their plan. I know you have some tough decisions to make with your build. I wish you all the best and look forward to more of your build videos.

Agree with your take. I will likely fly mine with affected QB flaps and ailerons and replace after a year or two. I personally am not too worried about structural failure if testing shows this not to be an issue, but will replace for resale value and long term (20 year, 4,000 hour) fatigue safety protection.

Long ago, (1990) Fokker Aircraft in NL investigated lasercutting of parts, especially rivet holes. It looked very economic. Sectioning the holes, and microscoping them, showed extensive heat affected zones around the holes. This was the method to ruin the tuned properties of the aluminium in a zone of say maximum 1 mm from the edge. Fokker rejected the laser cutting, and investigated water cutting. So what, 1 mm would you say ? Once a small fatique crack is there, is developed, the total fatigue life is used for 90% and 10% is left over. (Ask every fatique specialist over the world to confirm.) The proper method is: drill pilot hole. drill to larger diameter with sharp dril. Debur. Ream if necessary. Place corrosion inhibiter. Place rivet. Reaming is benificial. Very small cracks of 0,1 mm in the hole-edge by the drilling are removed and the fatigue life becomes still longer.

I would suggest you open up the holes to remove all crack indications. That will also remove lazer cut material property changes. Install oversized rivets and shave the heads.

This isn’t what they told me when I inquired about ordering a kit a few weeks ago.

Curious, how do you know which parts carry more load and which carry less (you mention seat ribs vs bulkheads, for example)? This is kind of information I wish I had available as a builder: some structural engineering in layman's terms.

Does the blue covering mean it was punched? I didn't know the laser had a different coloring? What color is the laser parts covered in?

It costs enough they just announced kit price increases, amount tbd.

IMHO (not a structural engineer), this laser cut fiasco is much more of a PR mess than a structural problem with the airplane. One crack in a dimple on one flange won't have much if any relative motion that would cause a real crack to develop. These parts are over designed for the amateur builder and will be fine for thousands of hours of flight. I agree that on flight controls, this is not a good place to have any cracks. Just read the recent SB's from Van's on the control hinge areas.

Bottom line, Van's is going to have to bail on laser cutting of parts. The WWII B-17 approach to fabrication has a long and established track record.

Passion for process is not good enough- not going through with my 7A kit purchase - this was my dream build. Van’s is acting like a 50 year old start up. This is a joke!