My overall impression is that it is without doubt the finest looking gyro I have seen. The finishes are nothing short of superb and the layout, seating, cabin heating / ventilation and space configuration all seems to have been designed with one thing in mind - pilot comfort!
Pictures I had seen of the Xenon beforehand did little to convey the size of it. It's a significantly bigger gyro than I expected - with ample elbow room and packing space. The footwell "windows" are a great idea - and apart from being very practical for landing / taxiing, I imagine that this must create a very nice sense of space and visibility when flying.
Try as I might, there was very little to fault the Xenon on. Yes the wheels are very narrow (as per most gyros), and I'd have preferred to see an electric trim rather than the dinghy-like string & cleat trim system - but these are minor issues and subject to personal preference. The break lines looked somewhat exposed to rough bush strip foliage and the rather acute undercarriage angle looks like it has little "give" in terms of suspension travel (for those bumpy landings or rough strips) - but Johan assured me that this hasn't been an issue. It was also interesting to note that ballast is required when flying one-up (depending on PIC weight) and I ditto Johan's comments about the rather fragile door struts rather than gas-lifts.
I've always been wary of aftermarket fitment of turbo's, fuel injection etc - and in automotive examples the relatively few success stories have usually been outweighed by the problems that arise down the line. Inevitably there is a trade-off from somewhere for that increased performance - that is a simple law of engineering. Hence my initial misgivings about the RST and the fact that apparently Rotax have not approved the mod. But the proof is in the pudding and the stats and performance data that Johan is sharing certainly seems to indicate that the RST is happy to fly at a slightly higher ManifoldP than what I'm used to at sea level. The pre-protator and rotor-head design look well-engineered and straightforward. I've always had a slight niggle about aluminium rotors & hub-bars - but that's just my very subjective opinion and personal preference and I'm not for a moment suggesting there is anything wrong with them on the Xenon.
I'm also on record here as being a strong advocate for the "tried and tested" principle when it comes to establishing the safety credentials for any aircraft - especially NTCA ones. In the past I was particularly disappointed by Xenon's dismissive, if not rather rather evasive, responses to one or two accidents / incidents which had occurred, and for me it's been very reassuring to see Johan happily and safely clocking up the hours on his Xenon in various flying conditions. In my view the Xenon has raised the bar when it comes to the standard of finish and presentation of factory-built gyros (admittedly with a price-tag to match) and I wish both Johan and Xenon every success with their beautiful gyro.
