4. Legality, part deux

The other pathway for manufacturers to pursue, if they want to blow right past the 254-pound weight limit, is to get the craft approved by the FAA under one of a couple different regulatory frameworks, Part 23 or Light Sport Aircraft. The process for Part 23 certification is intensive and extremely expensive, costing tens if not hundreds of millions of dollars and many years to complete. Light Sport Aircraft is less heavily regulated. Manufacturers adhere to a set of industry consensus standards in building and designing the craft, and it's not an easy lift, just more doable than Part 23 approval. To operate a Light Sport Aircraft, a pilot needs to have just a valid driver's license, so pilot medical certification is not a huge hurdle, though pilots do need to go through extensive flight training and testing in order to get that Light Sport Pilot certificate.