Are Light-Sport Aircraft too expensive? With yellow taildraggers from some companies exceeding $200,000, it certainly sounds so. Gorgeous and modern carbon fiber LSA run $125,000 to $180,000. So, yeah, if your budget is leaner or if you merely want to keep the price tag down for a recreational aircraft, it’s tougher than imagined before the SP/LSA regulation was announced in 2004.
Tougher, but not impossible. In fact, I’ve long maintained that we do have more reasonably priced LSA for sale but some folks want the more expensive, every-bell-and-whistle aircraft even while they resist the prices such gear costs. Our PlaneFinder 2.0 feature tries to address this with a price above-or-below $100,000. Even determining that can be difficult as some aircraft offer most optional equipment as standard while others prefer a very basically equipped airplane for a low price and let buyers add the stuff they want. Fair enough; a free market in aircraft should offer more choices and let the buyer decide.
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SkyReach (Aerosport) — BushCat
If you’ve been saying that Light-Sport Aircraft are too expensive, here is an airplane that may force you to readjust your thinking. While some carbon fiber beauties are indeed rather costly, BushCat has always been one of the true bargains. True, it is simpler in construction but that also means it is lighter which helps it perform well. In early 2017, BushCat starts at just $65,000 ready-to-fly. By any measure that’s a bargain. Find out more detail in this video from the Midwest LSA Expo 2016.
SkyReach — BushCat with higher gross (2015)
BushCat has long be both a very interesting design with features you will not find on other aircraft and it has a price point that most can consider. Prices changes so check with the supplier, but at $65,000 in 2015, BushCat deserves your examination. Now, it is even more capable with a new gross weight hitting the upper limit of 1,320 pounds meaning you can carry two 200-pound occupants and 65 pounds of baggage or other gear. Have we got your attention now?
BushCat Available Several Ways, All Affordable
Let’s move right to an important point. BushCat is most interesting aircraft with unique features of interest to many and you are much more likely to afford the South African airplane with its 2015 U.S. price of $65,000. That figure covers the Rotax 100-horsepower 912 engine; you can pay somewhat less with the 80-horsepower that is more than enough engine to give this light aircraft plenty of performance. You could also save more by assembling a kit version of this Special LSA.
However, now BushCat has another feather in its cap, so to say.
SkyReach engineers were able to raise weight from 1,245 to 1,320 pounds by strengthening components like wing strut brackets, then followed by an intense program of flight testing to include an entire regimen of spin testing (the latter representing much more work than many pilots may think). What does this do for BushCat beside bringing its numbers up to the max allowed in the LSA category?
Flying the TL Sport Aircraft Stream — Tandem Speedster: Solid and Predictable
After Sun ‘n Fun 2022 ended, as pilots were flying home to bases across the USA, a couple aircraft stopped nearby at the DeLand Airport. As this is only a 25-minute drive from my office, I grabbed the chance to fly both the TL Sport Aircraft Stream and their high wing Sirius.
I captured video from multiple cameras for each aircraft; watch for our video pilot report soon. While the video is in editing, I will give a short review of the Stream. This was a new experience for me.
As flown, TL’s Stream is in Experimental-Exhibition category. That will suffice for a few examples, but the future involving Mosaic may be inviting for Stream, so the model could get a leg up on some competitors by establishing a U.S. presence before Mosaic becomes the governing regulation.
Immersive Tandem
My demo pilot, TL Sport Aircraft boss Trey Murdaugh offered the front seat but I requested the aft seat so I could better observe his actions; it also helped record video.
PREVIEW: Sun ‘n Fun 2022 — What I’m Checking Out at the Season-Opening Airshow
When Sun ‘n Fun 2022 starts, a signal can be heard ’round the world. The message? It’s time for a new season of recreational flying.
After we got the LSA Mall set up to receive a flock of airplanes, I was able to get around the sprawling Sun ‘n Fun campus to see what else I planned to cover as the show begins. It starts Tuesday the 5th and runs through Sunday the 10th. I hope you can make it but if not, I’ll be reporting on the aircraft that I think may interest you.
One extra treat — for me and for you: my YouTube partner, Videoman Dave has been able to escape Canada and turned up at Sun ‘n Fun. We’ll return to our usual drill of roving around doing video interviews. I’m happy as Dave is highly knowledgeable about the same kind of aircraft I report and we’ve learned to work well together, making somewhere approaching 1,000 videos.
AeroSport, LLC
AeroSport, LLC BushCat offers a distinctive Light-Sport Aircraft within reach of almost any budget and available in multiple configurations. BushCat by SkyReach is fun and capable and available as a kit fully-built SLSA or ELSA.”
Up or Down? How Flies the Light Aircraft Industry in this Strange Year?
By any measure 2020 has been an unusual year. While millions were thrown out of work by lockdowns to prevent the virus from spreading, we all read or hear that plenty of other workers can work from home or have businesses that cannot be restricted by government decrees.
In this context, how might the aviation industry be holding up? We read — and some brave travelers have experienced first-hand — how the airline industry is in a deep hole, prompting large layoffs.
In this third quarter report for the calendar year, I’ll look at some numbers for general aviation manufacturers as well as the light aviation industry that has my full focus.
The short answer: some are doing surprisingly well.
Light-Sport Aircraft
Before I launch into an analysis, I must extend grateful thanks to Datastician Extraordinaire, Steve Beste, who does such a comprehensive job compiling and demystifying data from FAA’s aircraft registration database.
Did It Work? Midwest Light-Sport Expo 2020 — the Year’s Final Airshow
Lots of doubters expressed their opinions in the weeks and days before Mt. Vernon’s 12th running of this sector-specific event. Did it work? Were the naysayers right or wrong?
I will express one person’s opinion but reflect a number of comments I heard: “Thank goodness for Mt. Vernon airport manager Chris Collins and his contingent of orange-shirted volunteers who hosted this event,” making it another success.
To me, “success” means no accidents (none happened) and a decent turn-out that got pilots in new aircraft and vendors the sales that sustain them (both happened).
Summarizing Midwest 2020
In a typical year, Midwest attracts 1,500 or more pilots for the three days of event. My casual estimate is that 2020 was at least as strong as before and perhaps it was even up a bit. No one knows more. Midwest does not charge a fee to enter and more than one entry gate would make any effort to count heads futile.
DeLand Showcase 2019 — Ending the Airshow Year for Light-Sport Aircraft and SP Kit Aircraft
In about one week, it all ends. Before then, DeLand Showcase 2019 is set to begin! As this is the last airshow of the year, it’s also fair to say the season ends when DeLand show concludes. This year is the fourth annual event.
Since the Sebring show bid a final farewell last spring, DeLand will be the last light aircraft show until Arizona’s Copperstate/Buckeye Air Fair in February, followed two months later by Sun ‘n Fun. If you live in the eastern half of the USA, DeLand and Sun ‘n Fun are separated by five months. Yikes! You can learn more about Copperstate/Buckeye in this video with the Vice Mayor.
Next week on November 14-15-16, welcome to sunny, warm Florida.
Come to DeLand
I hope many of you who frequent this website will be heading to DeLand for the event starting next Thursday.