Says Training Market Is More Than Ready For LSA
by ANN Correspondent Chris Esposito
Al and Tim Adelman, father and son owners of Chesapeake Sport
Pilot, decided to give up careers as attorneys to work in a field
fueled by their passion for aviation. Their Stevensville, MD flight
school opened its doors in February of 2007 with one light sport
aircraft. Al and Tim shared their experiences in building the
flight school this week at AirVenture.
Tim Adelman first flew at the age of 16, and while completing
his college degree and MBA, he offered his CFI services on the
side. He realized the potential for an LSA flight school while
working on a program for the Department of Justice which uses LSA
aircraft for law enforcement. The Sky Arrow was the first aircraft
Tim and his father purchased, and its tandem seating and great
visibility generated a lot of interest at the local field.
Performing a market analysis was an important part of Chesapeake
Sport Pilot's startup, and Tim says he went to many airports to
simply talk to pilots and potential students about their interest
in the sport aircraft segment. The Adelmans also studied the
aircraft and products available in the LSA marketplace, and spent a
lot of time working on a financial structure that would make the
school viable. When the flight school opened, Chesapeake Sport
Pilot actually had ten students lined up without paying a dollar
for advertising.
As attorneys and experienced businessmen, the Adelmans saw the
school's business plan as the most important foundation to build
from. "It's hard to insure new LSA schools." Tim says. Having a
detailed business plan allowed them to legitimize their operation
to the insurance company as well as sell their operation to the
airport. Despite having two fixed wing schools already on the
premises, Chesapeake Sport Pilot's mission filled a niche that
would differentiate them from the other schools.
Tim and Al Adelman decided to become a Part 61 school, because
as Tim says the process to form a 141 school "is fairly
cumbersome." Chesapeake Sport Pilot chose not to go the lease-back
route for their aircraft, as LSA aircraft owners are tough to find.
Becoming appointed as an aircraft dealer for LSA manufacturers was
another rocky process, as the Adelmans found that some European
manufacturers expected the flight school to share some of the
aircraft warranty expenses. After much thought and research, the
company decided to start with a Sky Arrow, mostly because of Tim's
experience with the aircraft.
The next task for the flight school was to find instructors, and
the two owners decided to choose very experienced CFIs who had been
flying for years. The benefits were two-fold; the CFI's had more
experience and patience than the lower-time LSA instructors, and
the older pilots could easily identify with the student population,
of which 70% are over the age of 50.
One concern for the two owners was what they perceived to be a
lack of suitable ground training programs. The Adelmans began to
stock many training books and tools, and found that demand for
light-sport specific training products was high. The ground school
books, combined with the knowledge of the experienced flight
instructor staff, provided for a comprehensive program.
Today, as when the school first opened, Chesapeake Sport Pilot's
rates are lower than the other flight schools in the area because
the factory-new aircraft chosen require little maintenance. New
aircraft were picked because the school could not be certain what
they would get with a used airplane. "We know they're solid coming
into it." Al Adelman says of the brand-new planes. The school is
able to charge $80 an hour for the Sky Arrow, and $95 an hour for
Chesapeake's recently acquired Sport Cruiser and Tecnam Echo Super.
Prospective students can choose a demo flight for $99 that will
give them a taste of flight in a light sport aircraft.
In part two of this feature, we will delve into the flight
school's experience with estimating finances, hiring CFIs, the
aircraft selection process... and the trials and successes of
Chesapeake Sport Pilot.