Aeromarine-LSA Introduces Their Single-Place Merlin Personal Sport Aircraft

The first thing you notice about the Merlin PSA is that it’s a single-place airplane. Don’t confuse this with an ultralight…everything about Merlin PSA is the real deal. Aeromarine-LSA Company owner, Chip W. Irwin, says it can climb at 1,500 feet per minute and cruise at a bit over 100 miles per hour using a Rotax 582 engine. The letters, PSA, which follow the name of the airplane stands for, Personal Sport Aircraft, and that’s just what it is.

“The acceleration and climb rate are exhilarating,” says Erwin. “It brings the sport back into sport planes with a power-to-weight ratio about 50% higher than most LSA aircraft.”

The Merlin PSA is currently being marketed as an experimental-amateur built aircraft that complies with the LSA definition, and it can be flown under sport pilot rules. A complete kit, including the builder’s assist program, is said to be $34,900. The demo aircraft that has just flown is equipped with a ‘glass panel’ EFIS/EMS, 2 x GPS, transceiver, an ADS-B out-equipped Mode S transponder, BRS parachute system, electric trim and the new TruTrack ECO autopilot, and it reportedly comes in at about $50,000.

Erwin said about the first flight, “Flight conditions were less than ideal with gusty winds and choppy turbulence, but the Merlin handles these conditions perfectly. The pilot sits right on the longitudinal axis and the wing loading is higher than the average LSA so it is quite comfortable flying all day long.”

The all-aluminum Merlin PSA is available now as a quick-build kit. It is a modern design, created on 3D CAD/CAM equipment, resulting in easy-to-build matched-hole assemblies that require no fixtures, so build time is measured in days rather than months or years, according to Irwin. He says builders can enjoy a couple of weeks at the Builders' Center in Florida and complete their aircraft to flying condition.

The Merlin PSA in taildragger configuration along with tundra tires is now flying in Europe, and Erwin said this is an available option.

The next step, after flying off the test program, is to install the amphibious floats. They are finished now and the landing gear is operating perfectly with the remote wireless Bluetooth phone app for gear actuation.

(Image provided by Aeromarine-LSA)

FMI: www.aeromarine-lsa.com