The world of homebuilt aircraft — officially known in the United States as Experimental Amateur-Built Aircraft — has existed as long as powered flight. One could say, in fact, that the Wright brothers were the first homebuilders, since they never relied on a factory to construct their airplanes. They, like the homebuilders of today, used their own abilities and craftsmanship to construct a safe and efficient flying machine.
Today, tens of thousands of homebuilt aircraft fly throughout the world. A significant number of homebuilt aircraft have flown around the globe and one, the Voyager in 1986, was the first airplane ever to fly around the world non-stop on a single tank of fuel.