Dan Johnson

Light sport aircraft (LSA) have been part of the aviation firmament for almost 20 years and over that time some models established themselves even as newcomers regularly arrived. The way the FAA accepts—not “certifies”–-these airplanes allows for rapid improvement, which has stimulated surprisingly fast progress. Here are three favorites—two tried and true, and one relatively […]

Rotax Aircraft Engines has invited their worldwide flock to Wels, Austria, for some years. This charming town north of Salzburg is near the home of Rotax’s headquarters in Gunskirken. On three separate visits to Rotax, I was able to attend one of their Fly-in events, plus a special visit just for aviation journalists. Beautiful and […]

A longtime pilot joke goes, “What makes an airplane fly?” The punch line: “Money!” Forget all that fancy talk about Bernoulli’s Principle. While it’s true recreational aviation is not the cheapest activity you could enjoy, neither is flying only for folks with thick wallets. If you keep an open mind, some aircraft are likely to […]

I don’t know about you, but I can guess that MOSAIC fatigue is setting into a lot of quarters. Some pilots have done an extraordinary job of digging into the FAA’s 318-page Notice of Proposed Rulemaking document to distill essential parts that need to be addressed. Many pilots get exhausted just looking at the NPRM. […]

One sure way to know if a show works is to observe vendor participation over a number of years. As this is my 14th year attending the Midwest LSA Expo, I can tell you that 2023 represents a strong turnout. Companies come back year after year because it works to connect them with interested customers. […]

FAA proposed regulation has powerfully captured the attention of many pilots. Pilots have tons of questions. We have some answers. Everyone has a lot to read. Overall, FAA’s proposal has been warmly received as it opens the door to more capable aircraft that a sport pilot can fly. That’s good, but the document has problems, […]

During 2023, in only three months, I’ve lost count how many airframe producers have told me a story that goes something like this… “We (some manufacturer) offer two 100-horsepower choices: a Rotax 912ULS (carbureted) and 912iS (fuel injected), plus the new 141-horsepower 915iS (fuel injected, intercooled). Yet everyone is ordering the 915.” More power always […]