MEXICO, Mo. — In a hangar in central Missouri, pieces are built and put into a kit for customers to purchase.
Zenith Aircraft Company has been manufacturing kit airplanes in Mexico, Missouri, since the early 1990s, operating in a niche corner of aviation where buyers build their own aircraft from supplied parts and instructions.
The company traces its origins back to aeronautical engineer Chris Heintz, who began designing light aircraft in the 1970s. Zenith Aircraft was later established in Missouri to produce and distribute those designs in kit form, according to company history.
Ownership has remained within the family. Sebastian Heintz, the company’s owner and president, said the business is rooted in his father’s work in aviation.
“My dad started building airplanes even before I was born, so I kind of grew up in the business,” Heintz said. “Being surrounded by airplanes, it was always a love for me. And we’ve been doing this for over 34 years now.”
Zenith does not sell completed aircraft. Instead, customers receive pre-manufactured components and assemble the plane themselves.
The company operates in what aviation groups describe as the experimental and amateur-built aircraft category, where thousands of aircraft are registered across the United States each year.
For many customers, Heintz said, the appeal is both financial and personal.
“Building an airplane is an interesting way of going about it,” he said. “And the nice thing is, when you’re flying in the airplane that you’ve built yourself, there’s definitely a big reward there.”
Most builds take hundreds of hours, often stretching across multiple years depending on the builder’s experience and available time.
Roger Dubbert, a demo pilot with Zenith Aircraft, said many customers come to the company later in life after years of wanting to build and fly their own plane.
“I’m talking to customers who have waited all their lives to build their own aircraft and fly it,” Dubbert said. “And so it’s very rewarding to be with them and help them achieve their goals and then take them for a demo flight.”
Dubbert, who has worked with Zenith since the 1990s, said he also built his own aircraft, a Zenith 701.
“I built a Zenith 701 back in '98, and we use it as a demo airplane also,” he said.
During a flight in one of the company’s aircraft, Dubbert said the plane being used had taken about two years to build.
Heintz said the building process can feel intimidating at first, especially for first-time builders.
“It’s getting started, having the confidence in yourself that you can do it, and then actually doing it,” he said.
To help with that learning curve, the company hosts workshops where builders can practice skills such as drilling and riveting before beginning their own aircraft.
While modern manufacturing techniques have made kits easier to assemble, Heintz said the core appeal has not changed.
“It used to be you got a flat piece of sheet metal, you had to cut it, measure it, drill it,” he said. “Now the parts are ready for assembly.”
- Laney Toliver, KOMU 8 Reporter