Is this an exciting time for aviation? Have you been one of the many pilots anticipating Mosaic and the promise it brings for more capable aircraft? The new proposal is loaded with ideas we requested.
As with the SP/LSA rule of nineteen years ago, these features of Mosaic are stimulating all sorts of expectations …but also some worry.
One concern is that new four-seat mLSA with all the bells and whistles will be expensive. Well, they will be — compared to current-day LSA. Yet they will still be half the price of a roughly comparable Part 23-certified aircraft. They will also perform better while using less fuel. Plus, they will be new and nicely equipped with the latest in digital instrumentation.
Contrasting that is an entire fleet of legacy GA airplanes that many pilots have been yearning to fly using a Sport Pilot certificate (or using the no-medical feature of Sport Pilot with their higher FAA ticket).
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Texas Aircraft and the Colt — Expanding the Light-Sport Aircraft in Several Directions
I always enjoy when a new airplane company arrives on the market and sets plans in motion to expand and improve their flying machine. Texas Aircraft and their Colt 100 Light-Sport Aircraft is one such company.
Lead by the energetic and ambitious Matheus Grande, Texas Aircraft is moving on several fronts. Here is some update on the Colt builder based in Hondo, Texas.
Garmin IFR Colt
“Wait,” I hear some of you exclaim! “A Light-Sport Aircraft cannot be used for flying with reference only to instruments.” Wrong!
Rather than repeat what I have already written several times, I invite you to explore this article which makes an attempt to explain the situation surrounding IFR or IMC, that is, flight in actual instrument conditions; different from filing to fly in the IFR system for training or other reasons.
Certainly, most readers will see the value in a new, modern, fuel efficient, comfortable, and marvelously-equipped Light-Sport Aircraft versus a 30-50 year-old Cessna 172 or other legacy general aviation aircraft.
Texas Aircraft in 2020 — Logs First Customer Delivery of Colt Light-Sport Aircraft
How about this for a great way to start off the new year — a brand-new airplane? Both pilot and manufacturer are smiling and with good reason: both are winners in this transaction, as it should be.
Hondo-based Texas Aircraft Manufacturing announced today that the new Light-Sport Aircraft builder delivered its first new-generation Colt to Richard “Ricky“ Youschak, of Gainesville, Florida.
Colt has a history. While a clean-sheet design, the all-metal high-wing aircraft follows a successful design from Brazil, the Conquest 180. Built especially for the LSA market, Colt benefits from the earlier manufacturing exercise. Approximately 300 were delivered by the older Brazilian builder.
Colt gained its Special LSA approval last year. More details are available in this earlier article.
Texas Aircraft
“I cannot express how happy and proud I am of our entire team. Just a year ago, the Colt LSA was still in development, and we had just opened the doors at our facility here in Hondo, Texas,” Texas Aircraft Manufacturing’s co-founder, Matheus Grande said.
Texas Aircraft Wins FAA Acceptance as a Special Light-Sport Aircraft; Number 151 On Our List
Welcome to the newest Special Light-Sport Aircraft, the recently unveiled (at Oshkosh 2019) Texas Aircraft Manufacturing Colt 100.
The all-metal, high wing, yoke-controlled aircraft enters our popular SLSA List at Number 151, a fitting number just days after the newest aircraft sector celebrated its 15th anniversary. FAA announced the regulation creating LSA in September 2004. The industry has gained approval for an average of 10 new aircraft designs every year for more than 15 years.
On September 24th, 2019, the company based in Hondo, Texas received its Special airworthiness certificate from FAA indicating the agency has reviewed the company’s compliance with the full set of ASTM standards.
Earlier, Texas Aircraft had a grand reception detailed in this article with video.
I toured the company’s aircraft production facilities in Hondo and found them able to match other strong operations I have visited. The company has wisely hired outside talent as needed, for example, to gain their Special airworthiness certificate.
Texas Aircraft Colt 100 (0919)
Colt 100 from Texas Aircraft Manufacturing based in Hondo, Texas is a Brazilian Light-Sport Aircraft design. Based on an earlier design from the southern hemisphere country, Colt has been highly refined for the U.S. market. Colt is almost all aluminum, is powered by the Rotax 100 horsepower 912 ULS engine, and uses avionics from Dynon. In this short video, you get a full look at the new design and we go aloft. Soon — as you can tell from the cameras mounted all over Colt — you will be able to enjoy a full length Video Pilot Report but here’s a short video to whet your appetite.
Midwest LSA Expo 2019 — Day 2: Flying the Texas Aircraft Colt Light-Sport Aircraft
You know you have a great job when… you get to fly a brand new Light-Sport Aircraft on a bright, beautiful, blue sky day at a Sport Pilot-friendly airport. The job: writing this story and making a video. The task: Go fly (duh!). The airport: Mt. Vernon (KMVN), the award-winning Illinois facility that hosts the Midwest LSA Expo lead by the most customer-attentive airport manager one can imagine. What’s not to love?
The specific task in this case: Fly the Texas Aircraft Manufacturing Colt 100, now in the final stages of gaining its Special Airworthiness certificate as a Special Light-Sport Aircraft. See our earlier article.
The day could not have been more lovely and the air has never been smoother. The only thing I needed to make the experience a complete success was pleasant cabin mate as we went aloft to check out the Colt.
Texas Aircraft Manufacturing
Texas Aircraft, from the Lone Star state, offers a bright new entry: Colt 100, a descendant from an established Brazilian light aircraft. Colt is a handsome, clean-sheet design built of aluminum with a steel safety cell structure, performing strongly with its Rotax 912 engine, and showing a well-equipped, modern, deluxe interior that any pilot can love.
Texas Aircraft Unveils All-New Colt 100 Light-Sport Aircraft
In late February, Texas Aircraft invited me to an unveiling ceremony. As it’s always wonderful to witness the arrival of a new aircraft and sense the excitement and enthusiasm of its developers, I jumped at the opportunity.
Now that they’ve taken off the wraps, I am pleased to offer readers a first close look at the Colt 100.
Known as Texas Aircraft Manufacturing, the company hosted an event to inaugurate its new development and production facility at South Texas Regional Airport in Hondo, Texas.
Our hosts were Texas Aircraft Manufacturing CEO Matheus Grande and company partners Caio Jordão, Diego Jordão, Carlos Barros and Samantha Almeida.
In his opening remarks Grande said, “Thank you very much for being a part of this special, historic moment. It is our honor to have all of you with us. Today, we are here to celebrate the first important step of this company and we are so very proud to present our new facility to you.”
“Soon we will be launching our new Light-Sport Aircraft into the world market, and we invite all of you to join us at EAA Oshkosh AirVenture in July 2019 for that official introduction,” Grande said.
Van’s Aircraft Authorizes US Aviation of Texas
Van’s Aircraft has been creating highly successful designs for decades; more than 8,750 RV kits have been completed and are flying. Over 20,000 kits have been sold, cementing this Oregon company as the most successful kit aircraft company in history. In the last couple years, Van’s has enlisted Synergy Air to fully build and deliver their RV-12 Light-Sport Entry. Before the ready-to-fly project began Van’s had delivered more than 250 kit versions; the fleet of both kit and factory built RV-12s keeps growing. When that happens, many buyers — especially those who elected to purchase a factory-built ’12 — need quality places to obtain services for their airplane. Recently a Texas aviation powerhouse, US Aviation and their US Sport Planes division, was approved as a Factory Authorized service center for the RV-12. Company executive Scott Severen, a longtime recreational aircraft enthusiast and businessman, has been very successful at securing similar approvals from many of the top LSA manufacturers.
Midwest LSA Expo — Opening Day Highlights Strong Aircraft Turnout and Lots of Demo Flying
One sure way to know if a show works is to observe vendor participation over a number of years. As this is my 14th year attending the Midwest LSA Expo, I can tell you 2023 represents a strong turnout. Companies come back year after year because it works to connect them with interested customers. Both sides end up with smiles.
In this article, I will give you a glimpse of what you can see if you can attend on Friday and Saturday. For those that cannot come, this will provide some taste of what happens in Mount Vernon, Illinois in early September. Hopefully, you can come in 2024.
Every image you see below shows that vendors did not just bring one airplane to test the market. In every case, these companies brought two, three, or even four aircraft to show. That’s very rare even at AirVenture or Sun ‘n Fun.
What this illustrates is that the Midwest LSA Expo (about an hour’s drive east of St.
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