How many sets of plans for the Bede BD-4 were sold?

Short answer

Thousands of sets of Bede BD-4 plans were sold, and it remains one of the most popular homebuilt aircraft in the world, with hundreds of examples completed. By around 2011 there were 700 of the BD-4B variant built and flying. The four-seat BD-4 of 1968 was a more conventional design.

Published: November 4, 2026 · Updated: November 4, 2026 · Edited by Above Ten Thousand · Editorial policy

How many sets of plans for the Bede BD-4 were sold?

Ultraflight Lazair SS EC

Thousands of plans, hundreds of aircraft

The BD-4 remains one of the most popular homebuilt aircraft in the world, with thousands of sets of plans sold and hundreds of examples completed to date. In 2011 there were 700 examples of the BD-4B variant completed and flying. The four-seat BD-4, which appeared in 1968, was a more conventional design.

The BD-5, another scale of sales

The Bede BD-5 owed its appeal to the combination of a fighter-like look with a relatively low cost. That combination led to more than 5,000 BD-5 kits or sets of plans being sold, plus about 12,000 orders for a proposed series-production version certified by the FAA. After more than 5,100 kits had been delivered to would-be builders, shipments stopped. The money supposedly earmarked for making kits was being spent on other projects. There was an agreement with the FTC not to accept deposits for aircraft for a period of ten years.