Pilot Reports

The year started with hope. As 2022 arrived, America and most countries (China excepted) were emerging from two years of difficult lockdowns and Covid. The good news was that a flood of money from the U.S. government had buoyed the stock market and I’ve long observed that in a rising equities market, LSA and SP […]

Some might say Icon Aircraft has experienced a rather turbulent flight. The company came off the starting line boldly with splashy marketing including an immense, fancy tent right at the entrance to AirVenture. Each year at Oshkosh, the company hosted an annual party with special features and free drinks. It became a must-attend event for […]

Sun ‘n Fun does it. EAA AirVenture Oshkosh did it. Why not the smaller, sector-specific shows? Indeed, why not? I refer to reporting of show statistics when the event concludes. In modern vernacular, these are “metrics.” The likable and longtime manager of the Mt. Vernon, Illinois municipal airport, Chris Collins, has been forwarding some “metrics” […]

Somewhere, it seems like a group of light plane developers must have held a meeting and decided that low wing manufacturers needed to broaden their line to include high wings. A batch of new models has been unveiled or announced this year. (Article updated 2PM – 7/29 Fri — new image of the gorgeous taildragger; see […]

EAA has reported that the Warbird displays (ground and flight) are the single biggest draw at EAA AirVenture Oshkosh. Whatever the numbers, almost all attendees enjoy seeing World War II warbirds still flying, often in large formations. They make quite the inspiring sight. Another point of wide agreement among pilots is that perhaps the P-51 […]

How about this? Among the loudest “buzz” at Aero Friedrichshafen 2022 was the introduction of turbine engines on Light-Sport Aircraft. At least three well-known LSA producers are experimenting with turbines. OK, I know turbines are not allowed on present-day LSA. Could that be changing as Mosaic slowly works its way through the FAA? We won’t […]

As Sun ‘n Fun 2022 comes to a close, so does my daily reporting. This happens through long days and short nights. My sleep schedule can soon get back to normal. In an article already underway, I will make some forecasts for what we’ll see at AirVenture Oshkosh 2022 based on what was displayed at […]

Welcome to the newest Special Light-Sport Aircraft in the fleet: Savage Norden. The first example is in the United States and headed to its new owner. Norden is #157 on our SLSA List. “It is the best of the several models of LSA that Zlin has ever made,” SportairUSA boss, Bill Canino said of Norden. […]

Two wildly divergent events occurred in the last few days. They are completely unrelated yet they show the global interplay in modern light aviation. One story involves relative newcomer Icon Aircraft and their A5 LSA seaplane. The other revolves around the producer of the most successful LSA in America, Flight Design. Both airplane producer stories […]

Rather loudly and persistently I beat the drum about “affordable aircraft,” but readers also enjoy learning about other aircraft. I will never write about jets or multimillion-dollar turbines but I will continue to follow any “light” aircraft that meets LSA parameters now or after the Mosaic rule. In this article I will describe how two […]