Thorpe-211 Engineer "Earned His Keep"

IndUS Aviation says it's the first manufacturer in the United States to acquire a Special-Light Sport Aircraft (S-LSA) Airworthiness Certificate under the ASTM Consensus Standards. The certificate was issued on Wednesday by Inspector Rick Murdock of the FAA Southwest Region's Fort Worth Manufacturing Inspection District Office (MIDO).

IndUS Aviation registered their Jabiru 3300-powered Thorpedo model as N211LS (for "T211 Light Sport"). MIDO Manager Vaughn Schmitt responded, "This is a great accomplishment for IndUS Aviation. We are proud to partner with IndUS in issuing the Airworthiness Certificate for the first Light Sport Aircraft produced in the US."

Scott Severen, IndUS' Director of Marketing and Sales says it took plenty of teamwork at IndUS and a collaborative partnership with the Fort Worth MIDO to achieve early certification as a S-LSA. "The FAA has been exemplary in their support and assistance. This would not have occurred without the vision of Ram Pattisapu, owner of IndUS Aviation. And engineer Rahul Rajvanshi really earned his keep," said Severen.

The Thorp T211 was designed by John Thorp and originally certified as the T11 in the mid 1940's. Thorp's designs include the Piper Cherokee, P2V Navy Bomber and the T18, the first homebuilt to fly around the world.

IndUS has taken the original airframe design and updated the powerplant to a lighter, more powerful 6-cylinder engine, and upgraded the instrumentation. The result is a significantly lighter empty weight that delivers much improved performance, says IndUS.

While IndUS has a backlog of sales orders, they state they also have excellent production capacity. "There are still late summer delivery positions available," said Severen.

"Expect to see the Thorpedo followed up by the T11 Sky Skooter model, which is powered by the 85 HP Jabiru 4 cylinder engine," added Severen, "It's coming soon!"

FMI: www.indusav.com