Flying Boats in Florida; Sampling SeaMax

bydanjohnson

Saturday, March 03, 2007 at 06:35 PM ET

Verified

Key Takeaways:

SeaMax USA, co-owned by experienced pilots Carlos Bessa and Malcolm Jones (of Wallaby Ranch), is bringing the SeaMax aircraft to the US market.
The author is enjoying winter float flying in Florida, particularly praising the SeaMax as a "hot little flying boat" for its performance and fun.
The SeaMax is a lightweight (1,144 lbs) amphibian LSA that performs brilliantly with its 100-hp Rotax engine, reaching over 100 mph, and is expected to achieve SLSA status soon.

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**Carlos Bessa** is a partner in SeaMax USA. The business co-owner is **Malcolm Jones**, who operates the world’s most established hang glider aerotow flight park (Wallaby Ranch). Carlos also pilots a tug at Wallaby and has logged a rather fantastic 9,000 hours doing so!

My wife, Randee, and I are finding lots of good reasons to winter in Florida (while our home state of Minnesota gets buried in snow). Here’s three of those good reasons: SeaMax, Mermaid, and Drifter on Lotus floats. Float flying in winter is different…and fun! *** I have now flown the SeaMax three times. Yesterday we did three water and three land touchdowns. What a hot little flying boat. (Earlier SeaMax SPLOG) I use the word “little” literally…the amphib high wing LSA barely comes up to my chest and gross weight is only 1,144 pounds; LSA floatplanes can weigh 1,430 pounds. At this weight SeaMax performs brilliantly with the 100-hp Rotax 912S; 4800 rpm produces more than 100 mph. SeaMax has not yet finished its work to achieve SLSA status. But since this is the designer’s 22nd creation and as over 45 SeaMax aircraft have been sold into Europe and elsewhere, the task is not difficult, just time consuming. This is one to watch.