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Fri, Mar 15, 2002

The Players Speak: Reid Howell

President of Capella is First Post-NPRM Interview

It's taken a while for the dust to settle, from the arrival of the Sport Pilot NPRM. As our thoughtful folk have looked at the proposal's various sides (it covers aircraft, certification, and pilot licensing), there's a lot that needs to be watched. Some have seen Sport Pilot as the beginning of a new era in small, private aviation; others see it as the end of ultralighting as we know it. They're probably correct on both accounts. 

We asked Reid Howell, president of Capella Aircraft Corporation, to share his thoughts on the new NPRM. Reid has been around the small-airplane industry since it started getting popular, in the 1980s. His designs have been flown by a number of noted aviators, notably Duane Cole; and his Capellas, in their various configurations, have (after some hiccups) established themselves as popular, sturdy, fun flyers. More to the point, Reid has been involved with the concept of Sport Pilot since there was such a concept. Here's what he's thinking:

It's nearly there...

"I've been working on it pretty hard," Reid said. "As far as the NPRM is concerned, we'd call it a 90% solution as written -- we can bring it up to about 98%." The key, as he sees it, is to have enough, qualified examiners. "We're going to comment on the availability of appropriate, experienced pilot examiners -- examiners that are familiar with these types of aircraft." As he continued to tip his hand, Howell said, "The basic gist of our comment: 'What about the examiner who just doesn't know about the particular aircraft?'

If, for instance, I had to give a check ride with a, say, Streak Shadow [an aircraft that Reid admits to a fair degree of unfamiliarity] -- how could I do this, without simply looking at the candidate in flight, and seeing how he flies it?"

There's a workable solution, he thinks.

"One of the things I've been working on: a manufacturer would have to provide the instructor with a supplemental instruction manual. We could then combine, for example, a Capella XS, and XLS. To go further, you could, for instance, combine lots -- or even all -- powered parachutes."

He doesn't know everything about everything. [How refreshing!]

Reid admitted, "I don't know anything about trikes -- there may be a way to consolidate a lot of trikes, too." He knows a lot about his specialty, though: fixed-wing tiny airplanes. "As far as fixed-wing aircraft, there's a huge spectrum, from a Capella to a Weedhopper, to a Taylorcraft. A Kitfox, with its flaperons and different handling characteristics, is yet another kind of bird. I'm not going to say, at this point, which make/models should be combined; but I'd say for certain that each make and model should not need a separate endorsement." As the NPRM is currently written, you would need a different signoff for each make and model, something the FAA has pledged to clarify. Instructors, too, would thus need to be qualified in each make/model -- a virtual impossibility, since there's no starting point, especially for 'orphaned' aircraft, like the aforementioned Streak Shadow. Mr. Howell knows this, and has a thought: "Obviously, aircraft of a common make, with maybe some equipment differences, shouldn't need separate endorsements. I don't think you should need separate endorsements, say, for a Capella XS, XLS, or XLS Super 100 -- or even the single-seat SS." 

What about aircraft that look almost alike, and fly the same -- but one model has a wheel in the front, and the other has one in the back?

"A taildragger endorsement is already required, anyway," Reid reminded us. "So, you could fly all our taildraggers under one endorsement, and all the tricycle-gear under another endorsement."

Stress the need for relevant training...

Reid explained, "The object of the make/model endorsement is to keep costs down -- why should I have to send my customer -- or a Weedhopper pilot -- to a Cessna school, where they have to learn to fly a 172?

That's an expensive, complex, and overly-burdensome requirement."

It's not like a box of chocolates, he said; more like bread: "It's like a loaf of bread -- you buy it by the slice -- you don't need to buy the whole loaf, when you only want to make a sandwich."

If bread cost $80 an hour, we'd figure out a way to buy it by the slice, too!

Some things need to have another look.

The way the NPRM is currently written, student (sport) pilots cannot fly the faster machines, even though such machines meet all the other aircraft requirements. Upon the awarding of the certificate, the newly-minted sport pilot would then be able to fly in much-faster machines. Reid thinks this is quite impractical, and negates a large part of the "simplicity of training" idea that spawned Sport Pilot, in the first place. It also makes a nightmare for students, instructors, and manufacturers.

Reid explained, "There is currently a limitation for student pilots, to keep them under 87 knots. That's largely irrelevant, and might require an instructor to have two different aircraft. Compared with private pilot regs -- where there is no speed limit -- that just doesn't make sense. If you're training a student for solo, there is no reason why he shouldn't be able to solo a faster airplane -- that's what he bought -- under the eye of an instructor."

Capella's founder also had some idea about possible designed-in SNAFUs in the NPRM. "This is a diverse category of aircraft, and operators are trained in specific make/model. The reg, as currently written, prohibits a Sport Pilot from conducting sales demonstration flights. The guy that is trained in the make/model under consideration, is better-qualified than, say, a 400-hour Private Pilot [who would be allowed to give such a demo flight]. We're pushing for Sport Pilot instructors to be able to give those demonstration rides."

It's pretty close, though.

A little tweaking, and Sport Pilot might be able to address that '98%' he was talking about. "The whole concept is based on a streamlined training program -- let's not force the applicant to take more training than required for safety. Once we get the make/model consolidation under control, I think we can meet that goal," he said.

FMI: http://www.capellakitplanes.com 

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