FAA Says Safety Enhancements Merit Gross Weight Increase

By Bruce Brandon

ICON Aircraft CEO Kirk Hawkins announced Monday at AirVenture that the A5 amphibious LSA has been granted an increase in the maximum gross takeoff weight to 1680 pounds, an increase of 250 lbs. over the standard LSA amphibious gross weight. The request for the waiver had been made fourteen months earlier, and the FAA had promised the answer in three months. The delay caused ICON to have to make design decisions “in the blind” trying to read the tea leaves as to how to proceed during the fourteen month delay.

Now that ICON knows what its A5 can weigh, it plans to build its first production aircraft and begin testing  them in the spring of 2014 with the target of delivering aircraft to customers in May 2014 or after.

Hawkins stated that one of the unique features of the A5 is that it meets the stall/spin requirements for the new Part 23. ICON showed a video of a Cessna 150 and the A5 simultaneously stalling using identical control inputs. The C-150 entered a spin, while the A5 maintained a level attitude with a sink rate of approximately 1000 fpm. A parachutist falls at approximately 1200 fpm under canopy.

According to Hawkins, this is because the outer third of the wing doesn’t stall.  This is significant because 41% of fatal accidents involve stall/spin scenarios. Hawkins stated the A5 is the first airplane to meet the new Part 23 stall spin criteria.

One of the other unique features of the aircraft is an angle of attack indicator. As all airmen know, you can only stall an airplane by exceeding the critical angle of attack, and that airspeed is only an approximation of AOA, while an AOA gauge gives raw readout. The A5’s AOA indicator is on its very basic instrument panel. Keep the needle in the green and the airplane won’t stall. The A5 also has a ballistic parachute for an additional measure of safety.

Hawkins stated that ICON has its financing in order and does not have to rely on deposits to certify the A5. The delay in production does come with a price, however. Hawkins stated the anticipated base price for the A5 is now $189,000. He didn’t state what the new operating specifications of the heavier airplane would be, except that they would at least meet LSA standards.

FMI: www.iconaircraft.com