Van's Aircraft RV-3
These figures describe a typical build. Each aircraft of this design was built by its owner, and the one you are looking at may differ.
The RV-3 is the single-seat taildragger with which Richard VanGrunsven started the RV line in the early 1970s: 750 lb empty, 1,100 lb gross and, on a 150 hp Lycoming O-320 with a wood prop, Van's quotes 196 mph cruise, a 51 mph stall, 2,050 fpm and a 23,500 ft ceiling. The RV-3B is the current kit with a redesigned wing.
This is the purest RV and the one with the most history to check: the original wing had in-flight spar failures in aerobatics, Van's issued spar change notices and the RV-3B wing, and the company's own page says an RV-3 or RV-3A with the pre-B wing must have the changes or a new wing before aerobatic operation, so the wing's modification status is the first question in any purchase. Beyond that it is a 1970s-era plans-and-kit design built before matched-hole tooling, so every example reflects its builder's jigs and skill, and its empty weight, fuel system and panel are whatever that builder chose; 30 gallons gives it real cross-country legs for a single-seater. It is small, light and quick on the controls, and a 150 hp example on a wood prop will out-climb most light twins. The owner can maintain it, and the yearly condition inspection needs an A&P or the repairman certificate holder.
Variants of the Van's RV-3
- RV-3 · 146 active · this page
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TAILFAX SCORE
Among 1–2 seat pistons (321 models)
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What it is
| Seats | 1 |
|---|---|
| Landing gear | tailwheel |
| Engines | — |
| Engine | Lycoming O-320 (100-160 hp approved) |
| Horsepower | 150 hp |
| Fuel | — |
| Certification basis | amateur-built |
| Production start | — |
| Production end | — |
| Endorsements required | — |
Performance
| Cruise (75 % power) | 170 KTAS |
|---|---|
| Range (75 %, standard fuel, 30-min reserve) | — |
| Service ceiling | 23,500 ft |
| Climb rate | 2,050 ft/min |
| Stall speed (Vso) | 44 KCAS |
| Takeoff over 50 ft | — |
| Landing over 50 ft | — |
Load and fuel
| Seats | 1 |
|---|---|
| Useful load | 350 lb |
| Full-fuel payload | — |
| Max takeoff weight | 1,100 lb |
| Empty weight | 750 lb |
| Usable fuel | — |
| Fuel burn at cruise | — |
Cost of ownership
| Price, low | — |
|---|---|
| Price, high | — |
| Prices as of | — |
| Engine TBO | — |
| Overhaul cost, low | — |
| Overhaul cost, high | — |
The fleet and its record
| Registered, all time | 268 |
|---|---|
| Active fleet | 146 |
| Median year built | 1995 |
| NTSB events, last 10 years | 6 |
| Fatal events, last 10 years | 3 |
| Events per 1,000 active, last 10 years | 41.11 |
| Personal-flying events per 1,000 active | 34.252 |
| Ownership transfers, last 24 months | 43 |
| Transfers per 100 active | 29.453 |
| Airworthiness directives | 8 |
| Directives, last 5 years | 0 |
| Rate confidence | ok |
- Events per 1,000 active, last 10 years: per 1,000 active aircraft · base 146 active.
- Personal-flying events per 1,000 active: per 1,000 active aircraft · base 146 active.
- Transfers per 100 active: per 100 active aircraft · base 146 active.
Peer scores6
| Peer class | Fixed wing single-engine, piston, 1 engine, 1-2 seats |
|---|---|
| Accident record | 5.2 of 10 · scored on 21 years of events (fewer than 10 in the last 10)1 |
| Severity | 0.4 of 10 · scored on 21 years of events (fewer than 10 in the last 10)2 |
| Access | 1.2 of 103 |
| Support | 7.3 of 104 |
| Liquidity | 8.4 of 105 |
| Overall (sum of the categories shown) | 22.5 out of 506 |
- Accident record: class median 36.69 · 321 models in class.
- Severity: class median 13.04.
- Access: class median 1,000.
- Support: class median 77.5.
- Liquidity: class median 20.
- Each of the five categories places the model within its peer class, from 0 (the worst of the class) to 10 (the best): a position among comparable models, not a grade. The overall score is the sum of the categories shown that are scored, out of 10 for each (50 when all five are); it is given only when at least 4 of the five are scored, and it can be set against another model's only when both are in the same peer class and scored on the same categories. When accident record and severity cannot be scored because the model has too few records, the other three give a partial score out of 30, labelled as such; it is never set against a full score.
Data as of: FAA registry Sep 28 · NTSB Oct 2 · ADs Oct 8 · scores Sep 30