At airshows or other gatherings, I’m always amazed at how many pilots attend talks on engines like the Rotax 912. For those who thirst for more, here’s the newest DVD from ASA‘s Freedom to Fly video series on the operation and maintenance of a Rotax 912. ASA’s program covers a wide range from checking the oil to reviews of the electrical system or carburetor synchronization to cold weather techniques. Learning the right methods can prolong engine life and reduce maintenance costs. The video production features a talented group composed of ASA’s Sport Pilot expert Paul Hamilton with Phil Lockwood of Lockwood Aviation and Dean Vogel from the Aero Technical Institute. “This DVD is particularly useful to maintenance professionals, pilots, and flight instructors operating Rotax-powered Light-Sport Aircraft,” said Hamilton. He reports the program is the only one of its kind. The DVD, $49.95, runs 68 minutes and includes 17 minutes of bonus features plus a booklet with quick reference checklists.
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Why Not Rotax?
So, Why Not Stick With Rotax?
Why take a chance with any new brand, even if it is a Japanese engine? Why not stick with a familiar brand name?
HPower’s Tom Peghiny relates airshow conversations with a wide range of sport aviators, not only ultralight pilots. He reports: “Not a single person wanted to compare price or weight with the Rotax 582, against which the HKS engine competes. In fact,” he adds, “they overwhelmingly said simply, ‘Thanks!’ for offering an alternative.”
A few good reasons explain why the 700E may represent a better value than the 582. On the face of it, a ready-to-fly 582 will run about $5,400 retail, while the 700E is $6,500 with stainless steel exhaust.
The extra cost comes from the parts count on a 4-stroke engine. More pieces cost more money. And to make these engines last longer, they must be built of components that can endure long operating periods.
Super Drifter XL with Rotax 912
Considered by many to be a workhorse, the Super Drifter XL shows refinement and features that make it seem like a “luxury ultralight.” Leza AirCam, the newly renamed producer of this venerable ultralight, has equipped the top-of-the-line model with nearly every option in their price list. Conclusion: While it will cost you a bundle, you should be satisfied with this ultralight for many years.
How is this Super Drifter XL different from the Super Drifter that I evaluated almost 3 years ago? According to Denny Franklin – yes, that same icon of the Maxair days when the Drifter was a youngster – the XL is a significant redesign of the original Super Drifter 912 flown in 1998.1 It has seen numerous changes to make the veteran design work better with the big 80-hp Rotax 912 situated at the rear of the wing.
What’s New With the Super Drifter XL?
The Super Drifter XL has an extended fuselage – meaning the boom tube and its fuselage “pan” – to position the front seat 5 inches further forward.
Breezer Aircraft and the New Breezer II
Close to Perfect
It usually takes more than one
try to get something right. To
get close to a perfect aircraft
usually takes many iterations, but
Breezer Aircraft has come very close
to producing a wonderful light sport
aircraft with their Breezer II.
We’ve seen the Breezer before when
the U.S. importer brought the thennew
model to AirVenture Oshkosh
’05. I flew it that year and recently
got the chance to fly the Breezer II.
While many of the good qualities
found in the earlier model were
retained, some nice improvements
have been made. But it isn’t the airplane
that is the real story. As experienced
airplane buyers know, it is
often the company behind the airplane
that is the main story.
Breezer’s Brief Design History
The design history is brief because the Breezer
is a new aircraft, not seen before ’05 except during
its early development. That older, original Breezer
was produced under agreement by Comco-Ikarus,
the same folks that make one of Germany’s bestselling
ultralights (a different class than American
ultralights), the C-42.
Breezing Along
Like American
ultralights, European
microlights have paved the way
to a new breed of aircraft for European
fliers. Residents of the European community
don’t have the sport pilot/light-sport aircraft
(SP/LSA) rule, but they know how to build the planes
that serve the market.
Comco-Ikarus is one of Germany’s most
established microlight builders. After a
long and successful run with its C22
and C42 airplanes, the company,
based in Hohentengen in
southwest Germany, is
ready to run in LSA
circles with its
new Breezer.
Compared to the C22 and C42,
which is still being sold in Germany and
the United States, the Breezer is clearly
an original design. The Breezer has a
metal wing and tail, whereas the C42
has a fiberglass fuselage and its wings
are constructed of aluminum tubes and
covered with an advanced sewn textile
called GT-Foil, a Kevlar-based material.
The Breezer is a low-wing airplane,
whereas the C42 is a high-wing; the
C42 is strut-braced, while the Breezer
is cantilevered.
Super Petrel XP Arrives in Florida; Proven Product Significantly Upgraded
A few days ago a couple Super Petrel XPs arrived in Florida. In no time, Roger Helton‘s team had the pair assembled and had earned their Special Airworthiness Certificates, from two different FAA inspectors no less.
Development happens fast in light aviation; Mosaic will further quicken the pace.
Welcome to Light-Sport Aircraft where the swift thrive and those that can’t move fast enough fall behind. LSA is a market full of seasoned competitors. They’ve learned their trade well, surviving and some even gaining during the Covid upset. Any new creation coming to market will be measured against tough standards.
You think the pace of development is fast now? Wait as Mosaic approaches and company after company announces new products to take advantage of the “Christmas in July” list of new privileges FAA offered in the summer release of their Mosaic proposal (view list at bottom). The regulation is currently in review by the agency and according to their own statements, it should go live by second quarter 2025 (2Q25).
Your Own P-51? (Only Modern?) — Remarkable SW-51 Increases Production
Every pilot loves a P-51 Mustang, right? The World War II fighter with gutsy lines and a thundering engine turning a giant prop consistently ranks as one of the most desirable airplanes of all time.
Don’t even think about affording a real P-51 unless you win the lottery. Warbirds may be the biggest attraction at AirVenture Oshkosh year after year but only a few pilots have sufficiently deep pockets to own and fly one of these historic machines.
SW-51 is breathtakingly priced as well, many readers may think. Nonetheless, SW-51 is an awesome-looking flying machine that some will figure out how to afford.
Even more rare than a Ferrari, SW-51 is a very-limited-production design. The company forecasts a dozen aircraft per year. At that rate and given SW-51’s exquisite detail, I’ll bet they can sell out year after year.
Mount Your Mustang
You can watch a video below from Sun ‘n Fun 2022 that provides additional and fairly recent detail.
Flight of the Phoenix (Motorglider) — Top 50 Video Star Is Back with News
The Top 50 video series has gone over very well and continues with this post about the Phoenix LSA motorglider. If you thought it disappeared and were unhappy about that, have I got good news for you!
I am aware of a very positive development regarding Phoenix that I am working to confirm. As soon as I have fuller details I will update this article but the prospects for LSA motorglider look promising.
In North America, Phoenix Air USA is run by Ed Babovec (email) and he is excited about 2024. …more as it unfolds.
Motorgliders as a subset of all aircraft enjoy some very special privileges that endear them to the recreational flying community. In particular, motorgliders do not require an aviation medical. That alone makes them desirable but long-gliding capabilities make them safer to some pilots and simply more enjoyable to others. Let’s look a little more deeply.
First One in the USA — Flying TL’s Luxurious, Mosaic-Ready Sparker Aircraft
Some pilots can hardly wait for Mosaic. It takes all kinds, of course.
Many aviators want to use Sport Pilot’s no-medical aspect to fly a Cessna or Piper that they can buy inexpensively (or already own). That makes sense. These affordable aircraft are familiar and proven, even if they are products of the 1950s with mostly analog instruments and powerplants that burn 10 to 15 gallons per hour of 100LL.
Another group, owners of modern LSA, wants a little more weight than allowed by current regulation. Still others may want to fly at night or in IFR or to use an economical LSA for some form of aerial work.
Then we have what I’ll call the Mosaic LSA crowd. These are pilots with larger budgets — perhaps they sold a Cirrus or Bonanza and have equity to put toward a new aircraft. These experienced pilots are accustomed to well-equipped aircraft with generous cruise speeds.
Top 50 Video Review: Lisa Akoya, an Innovative, Sleek LSA Seaplane
“Lisa Akoya: You’ve Never Seen Anything Like It,” trumpeted the lead image. Ten-year-on translation: “You’ve never seen it.”
Inspired design, cutting edge ideas, elegant sleekness, and unique features set the French LSA seaplane apart and may inspire successive designs but Lisa’s Akoya never made it to market.
No wonder,” exclaimed some! More than a decade back, they approached a retail price of $400,000. After ten years of dollar inflation, that number would be way past $500,000 today.
Remarkable as it may be to those of us with normal incomes, buyers for high-end products seem often to emerge. Cirrus and their steady sales of million-dollar-plus four seaters is proof of that. To appeal to such well-heeled pilots, a company better deliver a beautiful, functional, well-supported aircraft. Doing that expertly at a premium level gets expensive.
Here’s Looking at Lisa
Lisa Akoya dates to the very beginning of Light-Sport Aircraft. In 2004, two aviation enthusiasts, Erick Herzberger and Luc Bernole, established Lisa Airplanes in the heart of the French Alps.
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