Manufacturers

In the last couple weeks, the number of FAA-approved Special Light-Sport Aircraft grew to 13 models. EAA keeps a current list, proved by copies of the airworthiness certificate, but I’ll list them here as: Festival, Breezer, C42, Legend Cub, Kappa KP-5 (photo), Bravo, T-211 Thorpedo, StingSport, Echo Super, Sierra, Allegro 2000, the CT, and SportStar. […]

As a new season of flying for fun starts the Legend Cub from Sulphur Springs, Texas made its first flight. Company founders Tim Elliott and Darin Hart say their new Cub lookalike (it isn’t identical, for example, it’s got a wider cockpit) is for “recreational flyers of all ages around the world.” That’s a big […]

Legend Aircraft‘s Cub is one of the top selling SLSA, ranking up high with Flight Design’s CT, Fantasy Air’s Allegro, Evektor’s SportStar, and TL Ultralight’s StingSport. Both American-made Cub-like designs (Legend’s and CubCrafters‘) have been 100% Continental O-200 powered because that engine is close to what was used in the original Piper J-3 Cub, which […]

Summit Powered Parachutes beat a group of companies working toward the first Special Light-Sport Aircraft PPC. The Vernon, British Columbia, Canada-based powered parachute producer won their SLSA Airworthiness Certificate on Thursday, April 27, 2006. I flew and reported on the Summit II in the 11/03 edition of Ultralight Flying! Magazine. I found Summit II to […]

IndUS Aviation’s Hot Thorpedo performs more energetically than the Continental-powered version. When you install a non-certified Jabiru 3300, six-cylinder engine into a 58-year-old certified light aircraft, you make one lively machine out of it. This relatively new company is doing things for this CAR 3-certified aircraft that legendary designer John Thorp could never do (for […]

For years, FK Lightplanes has been a leading supplier in Europe. Designs are created by Otto and Peter Funk, the father and son team that introduced the FK9 Mark IV (all-round use and trainer design), the FK12 Comet (enclosed, folding biwing), and the elegant FK14 Polaris, a modern LSA candidate available in tricycle gear or […]

FK Lightplanes FK9 Mk IV becomes our 21st SLSA since April 15 (a rate of 3 per month!). A longtime ultralight enthusiast with a list of FAA ratings, importer Tony Anderson has moved fast since securing distribution of Germany’s FK Lightplanes. Since my SPLOG two days ago, Tony was able to confirm by copy of […]

Perhaps a long time coming Austria-based Rotax recently certified the 65-horsepower R-582 two-stroke engine under ASTM standards. Now, some American designs may proceed with pursuing their Special Light-Sport Aircraft approval. One that pops into my mind immediately is Quicksilver‘s already-certified GT500 (under Primary Catetory from the mid-1990s) but many more could be close behind…for example, […]

And then we had 20…SLSA approvals, that is. Jabiru’s Pete Krotje announced his company had received not one but two FAA airworthiness certificates for J250 and the new J170. The latter is aimed at the flight training market. Smaller than the J250 which has an enormous baggage area — being based on the the four-seat […]

Many of you are aware of FAA’s confused state over “repositionable gear” for LSA floatplanes. At present the agency is stalled regarding the issue. I understand from highly placed officials that a solution could be to allow one gear movement per flight. That would fix the problem but changes move very slowly in the federal […]