The new SLSA SeaRey flies over Bimini island in the Bahamas. The water is indeed that clear!
A CTLS on floats drops in to visit the SeaRey, several miles south of Bimini.
The SeaMax explores the atolls off Bimini island.
Tom Gutmann Jr. and his partner father have sold more than 100 CTLS from their dealership in Tulsa, OK.
The SeaMax looks over the landing situation on an uninhabited island in the Bahamas. The newly certified SeaRey SLSA has already beached.
An early view of the Super Petrel bipe amphib that recently entered the country.
Another view of the highly refined (it’s been around for 20 years overseas) Super Petrel, which will come to market, says Brian Boucher, for perhaps as little as $125,000 introductory price. Yours truly hamming it up in the catbird seat.
Flight Design CTLSi dealer Brian Boucher (L) and Dan Johnson check out Brian’s other venture, the Brazilian-bred, biplane amphibian Super Petrel that’s currently being readied for SLSA certification.
The CTLSi seen from its home/hangar at Spruce Creek.
The 4-person-partnership CTLSi about to lift off from Spruce Creek.
Back from a busy, weather-challenging (for photography) trip to the Bahamas, I stopped by to visit Dan Johnson and his soul mate Randee at their Spruce Creek air park digs near Daytona Beach, Florida. If you haven’t had the pleasure, visit Spruce Creek sometime to see how cool an air park can be. Hundreds and hundreds of homes, condos, hangars and “planeports,” even on-site business and a restaurant make this a wonderful aviation destination. It’s my fourth visit over the years and always a pleasure … as it is to visit with Dan and Randee.
This time I got to meet Dan’s partner-in-aviation Brian Boucher, a long time, big-jet professional pilot and one of four owners of the new Flight Design CTLSi I flew for Plane & Pilot magazine up in CT at Tom Peghiny’s US HQ just before it left for Spruce Creek. The opportunity came up for Dan to join the partnership and the numbers made sense, so now the Johnsons are part owners of that lovely fuel-injected CTLSi. (* Brian is the north Florida dealer for Flight Design and due to his business relationship, a partnership share in the airplane became available. The chance was too good to pass up … access to a brand-new, superbly-equipped LSA; a chance to learn about the partnership concept as I had no prior experience; needing to pay only one quarter of all bills; and better utilizing an airplane, as a sole owner rarely exercises the airplane enough. —DJ).
He and Randee flew it over to the Bahamas and joined the LSA flyout organized by Bahama LSA Ambassador and Breezer dealer Mike Zidziunas and Aviators Hot Line’s Jacob Peed. Look for my story on the four-day event soon in P&P mag.
Meanwhile, here’s a few pix to whet your appetite for the Bahamas, and the new biplane Super Petrel LS, a long-time Brazilian biplane amphib currently in the process of going for SLSA certification through the ASTM process.
Leave a Reply