Now this sounds like fun: trying to blow up an iPad2! *** Jeppesen, the aeronautical charting company, just ran a rapid decompression test on the iPad 2. The poor, innocent device was explosively decompressed at an altitude of 51,000 feet! It came through with flying colors, which ought to be good news for just about every private or airline jet passenger intent on finishing their latest World of Warcraft scenario (after getting to a safe altitude first of course.) *** Jeppesen had previously tested the original iPad, part of a successful program to get initial FAA authorization for the Jeppesen Mobile TC charting App. *** The Jeppesen Mobile TC App is available, of course, from the App Store or through iTunes, and it’s free for those already subscribed to Jepp’s electronic navigation service. *** What does this have to do with LSA? Nothing much, I just thought the prospect of iPad2 coming through the fog of a rapid decomp unscathed was kind of cool.
Archives for March 2011
Is 2011 the Year of the ELSA?
One of the “diamonds in the rough” of the LSA movement has been the kit LSA or Experimental LSA or simply ELSA. For the first five years of Light-Sport Aircraft, fully manufactured Special Light-Sport Aircraft dominated the sales figures. With very few exceptions, ELSA were nowhere to be found. That’s begun to change, perhaps as voices have been getting louder about the prices of today’s well-equipped and surprisingly capable SLSA. Are ELSA a way to constrain the cost for consumers? Maybe. *** In February EAA reported that worldwide GA aircraft shipments included 889 piston-powered aircraft plus a slightly larger number of business jets and turboprops. Shipments declined 11.4 percent because of the struggling economy. However, EAA said, “Interestingly, homebuilt aircraft registrations continued their growth in the U.S. last year. A total of 941 homebuilt aircraft were added to the FAA registry in 2010, an increase of 10 percent from the previous year.
LSA Before and After Sun ‘n Fun 2011
It’s a great thing when a plan comes together. Consider an extension of the LSA Tour that debuted after Sebring 2011. Then, five or six brands flew around to a half dozen Florida airports and showed their LSA to groups of varying sizes. It was a first attempt, planned rather late without sufficient time to promote. *** The next tour is also working to pull itself together but the group has plans including summer tours, a website and more. The concept definitely works and here’s a fact: Most pilots don’t attend all the airshows. So why not bring the show where the people are? *** The Florida LSA Tour that took place the week after Sebring was principally organized by Bill Canino and Dave Graham. Bill’s early logic was, “We’re in Florida already and we have to fly home through the state after Sebring ends. Since everyone can’t come to Sebring, we thought we’d take the show to them.” *** The idea, involving several competitors working cooperatively, proved to be a success in the way that matters most to sellers and buyers: airplanes sold.
Skycatcher: Too Right, Mate!
Cessna marches on with its C-162 Skycatcher production. Latest milestone: it’s first international delivery to an Australian customer.Aeromil Pacific of Queensland’s Sunshine Coast Airport took delivery and will use the bird for sales demos. The FBO also plans to display it at Avalon 2011: the Australian International Airshow in early March. *** In related news, Skycatcher’s design team won the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics Piper General Aviation Award for 2010. Congrats to those hardworking slide-rule pushers. *** AIAA presents the award annually for outstanding contributions leading to the advancement of general aviation. *** As I posted after Sebring, Cessna plans to deliver 150 Skycatchers this year.
Insider Tips From A CFI
Here’s a thoughtful piece by John Zimmerman (for Sporty’s Pilot Shop online) that has the virtue of giving you a broader picture of the flight training experience. *** I’ll share the highlights, then urge you to link on over and join the discussion – there are reader comments and you can weigh in yourself. *** The article is 7 Things Your Flight Instructor Won’t Tell You. John isn’t out to accuse instructors of duplicity, but rather acknowledge that in order to pass on a wealth of information, things get unintentionally glossed over: • Students are likely to take more than the minimum of 20 hours (Sport Pilot) or 40 hours (Private Pilot) to get their tickets; • A Recreational license is still a viable alternative to both… if you can find a school offering the training; • Don’t show up unprepared for a lesson… CFIs don’t like it and it adds to your training hours; • You need both pitch and power to control airspeed and altitude.
AOPA’s Fuller: Let’s Rally GA!
In its declaration of 2011 as the year to “Rally GA”, AOPA echoes the call to action of its President, Craig Fuller, who said recently, “We don’t just want to watch for a turnaround (in General Aviation), we want to do everything we can to make it happen!” *** He’s urging members from all sectors of flight to honor, protect and promote our common treasure: – the freedom to fly. *** To do its part, AOPA put together a list of events for the coming year, places where we can all join in the celebration of flight and the discussion of how to move it forward. *** Check it out to see what’s coming your way.
The YouTube Cockpit
“Personal Video” has gone mainstream. Seems like everyone from pilots to skiiers and snowboarders to skateboarders to mountain bikers to…well, anybody in outdoor motion is slapping on these small, rugged, HD-quality, purpose-built camcorders to immortalize every breathtaking moment. *** Imagine how different memorial services are going to be in 2082. *** All it takes is your desire to slap a camera onto a helmet, headband, monopod pole, suction cup or get some Ram Mounts and tape/sticky-back/bolt/clamp them to a vehicle hard point and you are, “good to go!” *** And by vehicle, I mean airplane, car, snowmobile, dune buggy et. al., but also ski, snowboard, hang glider, shoe… you name it, the Adventure Vid gang is doing it. *** We’ve talked about some of these tres’ cool cams in the past but I just got re-seduced by the phenomenon yesterday. *** After wrapping up my Phoenix motorglider pilot report, due out in late spring’s Plane & Pilot, Jim Lee of Phoenix Air USA told me about a new POV camera he’d used to tape the 127 mile all-soaring flight he just made in that truly fabulous airplane.
“Preflight? You Don’t Need No Stinkin’ Preflight!”
As I preflighted a rental J3 Cub last fall, an older gent, kind of scruffy looking, was keeping me company, though we’d never met. *** A pilot and airport regular, he quickly revealed his belief about preflighting in general. “Aw,” he said, rubbing his grizzled chin, “just go. It’s a Cub, it’s fine, just get in it and takeoff.” I looked at him, wondering if he was kidding. He wasn’t. *** “Well, thanks… I think…,” I replied, mildly annoyed, “but I think I’ll just finish up here if you don’t mind.” *** “Naw,” he said, waving at the air, “just jump in and go; it’s alright.” *** I ignored him and his distracting insistence, wondering what his game was. *** We didn’t know each other. He had no reason, or right for that matter, to try and persuade me to skip a vital part of good airmanship practice. Perhaps, I thought, he’s an angel sent to cement my determination to do things right.
What Big GA Thinks about Young LSA
I often tell reporters and others that we must all keep in mind that Light-Sport aviation is an industry only six years old, a mere toddler in the realm of general aviation. In that time we’ve seen an astonishing development of all kinds of flying machines, 115 models deep. And this while industry had to write its own certification standards, establish dealer networks, build up supply chains to customers needing parts… from all over the globe, and much more. Contrarily, general aviation is many decades old and most of these systems have been established. *** Those GA folks, with all their experience, offer a way to help LSA grow and mature. LSA producers can learn a lot from these veterans. With that in mind, it may be interesting to hear a few comments from GA leaders. *** In an AIN Online article, writer Matt Thurber begins noting that experts ask the question, “[Is] general aviation (GA)… declining or poised for a renaissance generated by new interest in light sport aircraft (LSA) and avionics technology?” In a thorough response to the inquiry, Thurber cites the following general aviation aircraft production numbers: In 2009 only 1,587 aircraft were shipped, according to GAMA statistics, down from 3,029 in 2008 and a record 3,279 in 2007 (since a high of almost 18,000 aircraft in 1978).
Remos: New Dealer & Boy Scout Pow-Wow
Remos continues to build its U.S. sales/service network. The company just “promoted” Tom Pekar’s Success Aviation, near Houston, from a Pilot Center to it’s 16th Aircraft Dealer in the U.S. *** The new dealer has two Remos GX demos, one with an autopilot. Both are used in the school. *** “Most flight training operations involving the GX use about 3.2 gallons of fuel,” he says, “compared to over 5 in a Cessna 152 and close to 9 in a Skyhawk.” *** With the price of avgas jumping up the way it has been of late, flight schools nationwide have to at least be giving renewed thought to adding LSA trainers to their fleets. *** One of the tangible bonuses the GX brings to its quality build and superb handling characteristics (my personal view: it’s as sweet to fly as any LSA out there) is its capability of flying with the doors off.