Affordable Aviation

It’s already tomorrow (Saturday, October 10th) somewhere. Here in the USA, I write this on Friday the 9th, and tomorrow in America is going to be big, big day for small aircraft owners. As Facebook juggernaut, Paul Lindamood has promoted with multiple Facebook posts per day for weeks, it is nearly time for WUFI … […]

Big power is not just for LSA taildraggers anymore. A few years back, CubCrafters surprised the LSA world with its installation of the most powerful engine in the LSA space. The western U.S. company mounted a Titan engine from ECi making the modest Cub-like airframe perform far better than the old versions from the Piper […]

Yes, they call it “Ping” among themselves but it is actually P1 NG, as in Next Generation. “Ping” has a few American user-friendly changes from the earlier P1 brought about by comments from U.S. representatives of the Brazilian design. I’ll get into the aircraft changes in a moment but first let me remind you what […]

The Video Pilot Report below may be one of the most anticipated VPRs my video partner Dave and I have produced. I did the flying at AirVenture Oshkosh 2015 on Lake Winnebago in late July, but because Icon preferred to provide the video footage, it has taken some weeks to put it all together. Production […]

I know you like reading about aircraft. I like writing about them (and doing videos about them … more on that soon with a very special one in final editing right now). However, most pilots also like their airplanes to be all clean and shiny. Well, they don’t get that way without effort and without […]

We see and hear a continuing focus on electric airplanes including here at one of your (I hope) favorite websites. We’ll continue to hear more about electric but the whirring motors are not the only innovation in powerplants. In true, another project with a completely different sound may be more meaningful in the short term […]

At Summit 2011, EAA and AOPA jointly announced they will pursue driver’s license medical privileges for pilots wishing to operate GA airplanes with less than 180 horsepower with only two persons on board in day VFR. Combined with ongoing events in the LSA industry it seemed a “perfect storm” was brewing. *** The Storm includes: […]

When this website went live a few months before the Sport Pilot & Light-Sport Aircraft rule was announced at Oshkosh 2004, it began life as an archive of several hundred pilot reports I had written for a number of print magazines in aviation. That launch seems a long time ago … it has been eleven […]

The U.S. market for Special Light-Sport Aircraft continues to grow at steady pace, modestly better than the trend for single engine piston certified aircraft as reported by the General Aviation Manufacturers Association for the first half of 2015. SLSA deliveries in the half-year period totaled 97 units, with 91 of those coming from 15 manufacturers, […]

In addition to what you can read on ByDanJohnson.com, we have a growing library of videos. When I attend airshows, I frequently hear from attendees that they thoroughly enjoy these 8-12 minute productions. I have the fun job, seeking out airplanes and speaking to the developers behind them while on camera. After that my video […]