One of the oft-repeated questions about this new thing called Light-Sport Aircraft is: “When will the shakeout occur? When will some of these 75 companies [who certified a SLSA] disappear… and which ones will fail?” *** First, my ability to see the future is no better than anyone else. We’ve lost a few suppliers (Taylorcraft, Urban Air, Spain’s CAG, Higher Class). But as a longtime observer of many sport aviation segments, here’s my view: (1) The current market leaders — the top dozen or so — will likely remain as they’ve already proven themselves. Remember, many overseas brands have world markets so they don’t rely 100% on U.S. sales. And should they fail, it will most likely be due to business practices, not their aircraft design. A few newcomers will enter the top ranks, including such legacy brands as Cessna (which has presently delivered so few Skycatchers that the giant manufacturer is not yet in the Top 20).
Archives for May 2010
Noteworthy LSA Project Shuts Down
I’ve had my head buried in pilot reports, image processing and P&P’s 2010 LSA Buyer’s Guide. Guides in particular never seem like they’ll be such a mind-numbing chore yet every time the same number of eyeball-jittering, typing finger-stiffening days roll by. Look for it in the Oshkosh issue, late June I think. *** There are 107 registered LSA models on the books. I couldn’t write about all of them so went with the top-selling 20, realizing even then some great airplanes get left out, so I factored in another couple dozen or so that stand a good chance of garnering market share in the future. *** Most if not all The Magnificent 107 remain in some state of production – a minor miracle given our sluggish economy. Even more new designs approach ASTM certification this year. Clearly it’s going to be a big pie — with a lot of small slices — for a long time to come.
First Third of 2010 Even Slower than 2009
Sun ‘n Fun was a bright spot for the light aircraft industry as more than 20 sales appeared likely or were consummated. Yet anecdotal reports about generally sluggish sales were confirmed in a recent review. At least until Sun ‘n Fun, Light-Sport Aircraft FAA registrations show 2010 was even slower than a tough 2009. Last year, the industry registered 234 airplanes (plus weight-shift and powered parachutes yielding approximately 275 total LSA of all types). That’s more than 20 airplanes a month, yet 2010 appears to have slowed to around 15 per month. Those figures compare with about 45 per month back in 2006 and 2007. *** Why? No one has a crystal ball, but common suspects are: * an oscillating stock market causing hesitation among would-be buyers; * government budget problems, both in Europe and in the U.S.; * a still-stagnant housing market; and, * a widely-held feeling that LSA are still proving themselves, both for the certification method and many unfamiliar brands especially when the latter affects perceptions of customer service.
PiperSport Taps Into Social Media
If you’ve checked into Facebook since January you may know that PiperSport has its own page that you can become a fan of (I am, along with 9,200 others so far!) *** What you probably don’t know is there’s a fascinating video interview that chronicles why and how Piper decided to add social media such as Facebook and YouTube to its marketing strategy for the already-popular LSA. *** Very very interesting, and likely a sign of future marketing efforts from ad-cash-starved LSA makers. *** To date, the only other company I know that has a Facebook presence is Gobosh, and they’ve been there for some time. *** I won’t reprise the entire video clip (it’s well worth watching), but here are some of the highlights: *** Back in January, Piper’s content creators were tasked with making a video for the imminent launch of the PiperSport (the rebadged, “Piperized” CZAW SportCruiser). They also had to set up a Twitter feed, YouTube channel and the Facebook fan page.
Twin Solo Round-the-World Flights Land in Miami
As they connect the dots of their plan to circumnavigate the world in celebration of 100 years of aviation in Switzerland, Yannick Bovier and Francisco Agullo have now spanned one immense body of water. The pair of twin Flight Design CTLS “Ecolight” aircraft cleared a big hurdle with the jump across the Atlantic from Africa to Brazil (map photo). Bigger bodies of water await the dynamic duo, two young European airline pilots. But before setting out across the Pacific, they will cruise across the USA to receptions like that which greeted the pair in Maimi. *** Flight Design USA’s John Gilmore says, “These kind of very long distance flight show pilots that Light-Sport Aircraft like CTLS can fly long distances reliably and efficiently.” All round-the-world flights so far in LSA have used the Rotax 912; this engine recently increased its Time Between Overhaul (TBO) to 2,000 hours, a comparable value to long-proven engines like Continental and Lycoming.
FlewTube …LSA Featured on L.A. TV
Getting the word out to the great unwashed about the virtues of LSA flight — even with the
inevitable “mainstream media” gaffes and the general buffoonery it typically displays regarding
general aviation — is an ongoing devotion for all LSA entrepreneurs, from manufacturers to flight
schools. *** Witness then this terrific video clip that enterprising young Brit’ (profiled in my
blog a few weeks ago) Charlie Thompson of Santa Monica Flyers
pulled off on Los Angeles’s local, venerable tv station, KTLA.
*** I remember KTLA and it’s veteran newscasters since age 5 (that’s six decades back, sports fans!)
The station has a long and storied history, so having it run a spot extolling the virtues of LSA
during its prime broadcast slot and also posted on the web is a real plum for sure.
*** Charlie wisely told the reporter the aircraft he was flying was the
PiperSport, although in fact he’s
training and doing demos in a CZAW SportCruiser.
The Longest Flight
Two wild-and-crazy Swiss airline pilots decided to take a busman’s holiday – one hell of a busman’s holiday – by taking two Flight Design CTLS S-LSA on a little jaunt, in celebration of the birth of aviation in Switzerland 100 years ago. *** Their destination? The airport they launched from April 30th: Sion, Switzerland. *** The catch? Before they return to Sion, they’re flying around the world! *** Dan Johnson’s got a detailed writeup on his Splog but the short tell is the pilots, Yannick Bovier and Francisco Agullo, will fly 27,500 miles over 18 countries, five continents and two oceans. *** Both craft are modified to carry extra fuel – 120 gallons each, instead of the stock 35 gallons. *** They’re also carrying survival gear including water ditching rafts as their route crosses both the Atlantic (Africa to South America) and the Pacific (America to Viet Nam). *** As of today they’ve made it across from Africa to Natal, Brazil.
Judging Winners Sun ‘n Fun 2010
I once followed judging at shows like AirVenture and Sun ‘n Fun. In fact, an aircraft I helped inspire — a modernized primary glider called the SuperFloater — won Outstanding New Design at Sun ‘n Fun 1995. Judges closely examined homebuilts, kit or restored vintage airplanes, and warbirds. If they included factory built aircraft, I was not aware of it. *** So, this year I admitted surprise after learning factory-built Light-Sport Aircraft won awards. *** To honor the hundreds or thousands of hours people put into their winners, I want to highlight some LSA and ultralights that judges liked. The Grand Champion LSA was Wayne Spring’s 2010 Predator powered parachute; Reserve Grand Champ was James Jonannes’ 2009 Arion Lightning LS-1; Grand Champion Ultralight was James Wiebe’s 2010 Belite Superlite; and, Reserve Grand Champ was Danny Dezauche’s 2010 CGS Hawk Ultra.
ICONographic Marketing
I thought I’d share a couple interesting videos recently posted on the Icon Aircraft website. There’s a multimedia gallery of high-profile, appealing eye candy, including YouTube videos chronicling various aspects of the ongoing test program for the company’s A5 amphibian S-LSA. *** Two I found particularly interesting: a stall sequence and a potpourri of recent flight test ops. *** First, the stall sequence shows the classic tufted airflow indicators taped to the wing to demonstrate inflight stall progression from the root outward. *** Watch the tufts near the root begin to wiggle and change direction first, demonstrating loss of lift. Then see the stall move outward from the root and along the trailing edge. To my eye, it seems like the middle of the wing completely stalls before the root. I’d like to know about the aerodynamic significance of that, and why the wing doesn’t stall more classically at the root first.
Sympathy Flying
Michael Combs’s epic Flight For The Human Spirit odyssey just made it into Chicago a few hours ago after a whirlwind tour of the Northeast (he just missed some premature, summery 90-degree weather — and nasty thunderstorms). *** Since Michael’s flying a new Remos GX, I thought to make a sympatico gesture by taking the air in the same type, and, I confess, to prep my flight report for the July print issue of P&P. *** BTW, Tom Peghiny, Prez of Flight Design, told me recently he was in the dark whenever I wrote “dead tree P&P”. (I guess he doesn’t read Time magazine online, they say “dead tree Time” all the, uh, time.) Alas, in deference to Tom and others similarly not conversant in super-hip online lingo, I must abandon journalistic trendiness in favor of humdrum journalistic clarity.) *** Anyway, with many thanks to Ron Glazer of Remos (and Marketing Veep Ken Weaver, who sent him up) for making an extra leg to meet me, I finally got my chance to fly the bird. *** Ron flew the 2010 Remos GX Aviator II (full panel version) into Great Barrington Airport (GBR) in Massachusetts — one of God’s little aviation secrets, shhh!