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A good pilot is always learning -- how many times have you heard this old standard throughout your flying career? There is no truer statement in all of flying (well, with the possible exception of "there are no old, bold pilots.")

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Aero-Tips 07.30.06

Writing this at AirVenture 2006 I'm surrounded by the excitement of Light Sport aviation. There are well over a dozen newly certificated light sport designs featured, from established manufacturers, newcomers to the industry, and even the lightplane powerhouse Cessna exhibiting its proof-of-concept LSA -- from some angles bearing a strong family resemblance to a straight-tail Cessna 150.

"New" being what it is, the typical asking price for a Light Sport is $80,000 to $100,000. Between purchase cost and the expense of insuring such a pricey airplane (especially in a training/rental market), the few LSA-renting FBOs to date are having to charge about the same hourly rate common in late-model Cessna Skyhawks: $90 to $110 per hour, with instructor fees extra. The result: renting a Light Sport airplane won't be any less expensive than traditional general aviation, and may be more costly that renting the older Cessnas and Pipers that are the mainstay of instructional/personal flight.

Sport Aviation Club

For Light Sport to thrive in the U.S. I think we should take a lesson from some of our European and Australian friends. Flying clubs are common in foreign lands, member-run groups that own and operate one or more small airplanes. The "Sport Aviation Clubs" provide an informal atmosphere conducive to family activities and social gatherings on nice days, with members taking turns leading talks and projects that teach the other members what they've learned about flying.

Since Light Sport airplanes by nature are not cross-country ships, it'll be unusual when they'll be gone for more than about an hour at a time, so if the airplane is out when a member arrives at the club to fly it'll usually be back before too long. This permits time for hangar-flying or reviewing videos or visiting with the family until the airplane comes back. The atmosphere would be more like the extremely successful sport parachute clubs in the U.S., where members tend to gather all day long and socialize while they wait their turns to go airborne.

Traditionally many joint ownerships and clubs have not worked well in the U.S., I think, because traditional American general aviation pilots are more interested in cross-country flight, limiting airplane availability. With renewed emphasis on simple, local flight under Light Sport rules, however, U.S. pilots might be more open to a well-run partnership. A Sport Aviation Club may be a vehicle for many Sport Pilots to band together to purchase, insure and own one of the exciting new Light Sport aircraft.

Aero-tip of the day: Interested in Light Sport? Think about forming a Sport Aviation Club.

FMI: Aero-Tips