Aero Affinity

Every pilot loves a P-51 Mustang, right? The World War II fighter with gutsy lines and a thundering engine turning a giant prop consistently ranks as one of the most desirable airplanes of all time. Don’t even think about affording a real P-51 unless you win the lottery. Warbirds may be the biggest attraction at […]

Is a Showcase an airshow? Or is it a trade show? Is this the same as an event once called the DeLand Sport Aviation Showcase? To these questions, you could reply, “Who cares?” This year’s Aero Showcase displayed a worthy selection of handsome airplanes. What more do pilots want? Entry and parking were free. Amenities […]

In this post, we’ll look at three news items affecting the affordable aviation community. This article touches on the last LSA event of the season plus two market leaders, one from the US and one international, each with significant news. Aero Showcase November 3-4, 2023 First up is some fun news to complete a vigorous […]

It was one of those fortuitous incidents. For my next subject aircraft, I chose the Altus motorglider because this particular aircraft was personally intriguing to me. I enjoy soaring, gliders, and therefore motorgliders. However, it’s not an ego thing. Motorgliders have a very special niche in American aviation. I’ll get to that below. What made […]

Whoo, Hoo! It’s almost showtime! April 2023 seems destined to finally overcome all the Covid baggage as attendees sign up in droves for Sun ‘n Fun. With a delicious 10-day spacing between them — time to rest up a bit after a vigorous week — later in April comes Aero Friedrichshafen. Get ready for plenty […]

It’s cold up north. So, time for a winter boat show? What’s that got to do with seaplanes? Why don’t organizers present the Minneapolis Boat Show in spring or summer? Fact: Minnesota owns 30% more boats per capita than any other American state. Wisconsin is in third while South Carolina is second. Florida leads the […]

Pilots love airplanes (duh!). Pilots also love engines, especially when they are truly powerful. So, perhaps Brazilian manufacturer Montaer made a market-savvy move by moving quickly to incorporate Rotax’s most potent engine, their 915iS producing 141 horsepower in a turbocharged and intercooled package. The result of Bruno de Oliveira‘s design work is MC01 915 as […]

As I departed DeLand airport on Saturday at the close of Aero Showcase 2022, I recalled multiple conversations with attendees regarding the airplanes on display. Over and over I was asked if one of the displayed aircraft could benefit from a higher weight under Mosaic rules. The short answer, I told them, is yes. A […]

When I asked “Mosaic LSA?” in the lead image of this article, was I simply being provocative? Or, is the soon-to-be-debuted Montaer MC01 with Rotax 915iS a forecast of what is to come with Mosaic? Hopefully the title did get your attention but it asks a legitimate question for buyers of new potentially-Mosaic-compliant Light-Sport Aircraft. […]

We leave the grounds of Oshkosh ghosted with images of planes that attracted major interest. From Wisconsin we fly far south to Brazil, home to Montaer and its MC-01, number 154 on our Special Light-Sport Aircraft List. Montaer will now be represented in the USA by a new group, Aero Affinity, whose ambitions are impressive […]