As a pilot, Arjen (pronounced ‘ari-ahn’) Visser is a relative newcomer to the skies; he has been flying solo for only three years. However, his passion for aviation began as a young boy. It is something that he shares with his father, a glider pilot, who built a full-size glider in the garage of the family home. Since then, Arjen has built and flown everything from hand-launched balsa-wood toy gliders to scratch-built radio controlled (RC) model planes and a homemade drone.
More recently, he has been piloting a two-seater Thorp S-18, but now he is taking his yen for flight to the next level: assembling his own four-seater Sling TSi light sport aeroplane — one of only three in the country — in the basement of his Auckland home.
So much to learn
Arjen has never built a life-size plane before but says that he loves learning: “The great thing about this project is there are always new things to build and learn. It is a challenge, but very fulfilling.”
Memories of his father’s glider build remain close to mind. His dad never got to fly his craft, as it met an unthinkable end on its second flight when the test pilot brought it down hard, destroying the undercarriage. It later transpired that the glider model
