Whenever I write about FAA’s Mosaic regulation, especially when I mentioned the date they predicted, a substantial percentage of all readers shrug this off, believing that FAA will never complete it on time.
What if I told you they were ahead of schedule? Is that an unbelievable claim? Perhaps, but the proof is right here, right now! Can’t wait? Check the link below.
Consider the following communication from the ASTM committee working on LSA standards. In case you don’t know what that is, ASTM is an industry standards group that operates privately, creating and getting agreement on standards used by FAA to accept Light-Sport Aircraft into the aviation fleet. (This is different than conventional FAA “certification.”)
BIG MOSAIC NEWS
Honestly, from almost the beginning, FAA has moved faster than most of us imagined. At EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2022 FAA announced they would remove the drone portion of Mosaic, which was delaying the overall regulation as that community works out their issues.
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More than Spinning Multicopters, Here’s an In-the-Wing Electric Idea that Recently Won a Patent
Naturally, sharp-eyed ByDanJohnson.com readers already know about Chip’s big idea. See this article; scroll down.
What you didn’t know is that this idea was unique enough to win a patent. That’s uncommon in recreational aviation, though, of course, an idea like this may go far beyond sport flying.
Chip Erwin is one of those restless people who probably lays awake night cooking multiple ideas in his brain at the same time. Many industries have their “Elon Musk” type who moves forward on several fronts despite plenty of people telling him he can’t do what he does every day.
As the mainstream media hyperfocuses on multicopter air taxi ideas consuming vast amounts of money (why media pays attention in the first place), people like Chip have different thoughts about using electric power on aircraft. Depod is one of those concepts.
Depod is not intended for Merlin Lite.
Top 50 — Beginning the Decade of Gyroplanes; Meet ArrowCopter and Those That Followed
A dozen years ago, fixed wing pilots thought very little about “gyrocopters” — as some people called them. Actually that word is a model name established by Igor Bensen, widely thought of as the father of this activity along with Juan de la Cierva of Spain, known for his pioneering autogyro work.
The preferred term these days is “gyroplane.” Names aside, what pilots care about is having fun in the air and being able to afford a flying machine. When an aircraft also looks terrific, heads turn.
From eleven years ago comes the #3 in our list of Top 50 Aircraft Videos. More than 450,000 views of this video show broad interest in ArrowCopter, quite the head turner in its day.
Gyroplane interest grew quickly after European designers took the lead from American manufacturers. Think back to the days of Ken Brock’s gyro or the former Air Command (now under new management).
Air Taxi or Air Funster? — 5 Models in Development, as Part 103 Multicopters Not Taxis
If you listen to perpetually-excited media, air taxis will soon be shuttling people hither and yon in all the big cities of the globe. Executives and shoppers will be whisked around downtown skyscrapers silently, quietly, swiftly, and the cost will be modest. Do you buy all that? I’m not holding my breath.
Oh, these air taxi vehicles are coming. I don’t doubt that, if for no other reason than they are absorbing vast amounts of money as people bet on some grand future where infotech merges with aviation to make flying vastly better and easier. It’s a fantastic dream and when smart people powered by enough money work on something long enough… something often happens.
Fine. That’s the sales pitch and apparently it’s working because more than 350 companies around the globe have raised billions of dollars to pursue their dreams yet the first entries remain far from market.
Several people at the very pinnacle of FAA have departed the agency and are now working for air taxi developers (naturally, they are often called by some term other than the mundane “air taxi” label).
Sparker to Ignite Mosaic’s Energy? New and Upgraded mLSA from TL Ultralight
At Aero Friedrichshafen 2023, visitors saw numerous aircraft that could qualify as Mosaic Light-Sport Aircraft or mLSA. In nearly every aisle of the several large halls of Aero, visitors and journalists could see entry after entry apparently made-for-Mosaic. Indeed, so many entries potentially qualify for this coming new segment that I ran out of time to examine all of them.
We are headed into an interesting period of aircraft development and the subject of this article is a perfect example. Welcome to TL Ultralight’s enhanced Sparker.
The model was introduced to the European 600 kilogram (1,320 pound) standard but over the last year it has gone through an extensive evaluation and upgrade to carry a 750 kilogram load (1,653 pounds). It was also revised to accommodate Rotax’s 915iS and 916iS engines.
With greater capacity and with 160 horsepower available, I’d call this a mLSA or Mosaic-ready Light-Sport Aircraft.
Super-Efficient Electric Flight — Ego Trike with ATOS Wing Shows How E-Propulsion Works Today!
From dawn to dusk, we hear how electric propulsion is going to save the Earth. Whatever your belief about the hazards of fossil fuel, electric propulsion is coming. When is another matter.
Air taxi ventures based on multicopter designs are drinking up funds by the tens or hundreds millions of dollars, probably billions by now. I don’t have a shred of doubt that these will lead to genuine changes in transportation… but I would not hold my breath until such services become common. I suspect it will be many years yet.
However, today, electric propulsion for ultralight aircraft works quite well, especially when it serves a purpose. For soaring pilots, power is about getting to altitude where they can explore ridge, thermal, or wave lift. Those who love such flying, like me, seek out the best machine that might deliver that capability. Ultralight Design’s Ego trike can.
High-Tech Composite
Anyone who knows hang glider wings will admire both the construction and substantially higher performance of what’s called a rigid wing — more common hang gliders are called flex wings.
After Spring Airshows, Mosaic Questions Emerge — Here’s What We Know Before FAA’s NPRM Is Released
LAMA, the Light Aircraft Manufacturers Association, hosted a gathering of European manufacturers during last month’s Aero Friedrichshafen show. Van’s Aircraft President and Chief Engineer Rian Johnson accepted LAMA’s invitation and presented an update on Mosaic. As the leader of the ASTM committee working on LSA standards, he covered expected changes to help manufacturers prepare.
How can builders design for a regulation they haven’t seen? Thanks to the use of industry consensus standards, the lighter aircraft industry is more aware than you might expect.
Understandably, manufacturer interest is keen; it’s their business. At the same time, individual pilots increasingly raise similar questions.
Top-Four Questions
I’ll address some common inquiries before getting into specifics of the LAMA meeting. The following reflects questions I’ve often heard, along with my responses. As you read these, remember, I am merely one reporter describing discussions I’ve heard. Disclaimer: Information in this article is not official and may not reflect what FAA is planning.
CubCrafters Votes for Rotax — New Carbon Cub UL Model Is First-Ever 916iS Installation
CubCrafters has never made an aircraft powered by Rotax. Images accompanying this article portray their very first example using the 9-series engine in a model intended for production. Most of their factory pilots or dealers have never flown behind a Rotax.
Yet Carbon Cub UL is also the first aircraft in the world to be fitted with the Austrian engine maker’s newest 916iS powerplant. Why did the Washington state company do this?
One main reason given by Brad Damm, the company’s vice president of sales and marketing, is because customers asked for it. However, Brad has several other good reasons, which he shared in the video below.
916iS Launch Customer
At Sun ‘n Fun 2023, CubCrafters introduced a new variant of its Carbon Cub aircraft line. Being developed with a special eye for international markets, the west coast company named it “Carbon Cub UL.”
“We invested in several new technologies to make the Carbon Cub UL even lighter and better performing than its predecessor, the Carbon Cub SS,” stated CubCrafters.
Sun ‘n Fun 2023, Day 3 — Four-Stroke Power for Part 103 Ultralights, Available Now
If I hear one thing over and over it is this: “I want a four-stroke engine for my Part 103 ultralight. Are any available?”
For years the answer was, “Well, brand XYZ offered one but they disappeared from the market some years ago. One such winner I flew was the Bailey four-stroke out of England. However, a visit to their website recently was not very productive. Regretfully, other four-stroke powerplants are rare (although for slightly larger airplanes, Chip Erwin’s V-Twin will soon add to the choices).
Are you out of luck trying to obtain a Part 103 four-stroke? NOPE!
Aero 1000 Engine
Fine Swiss Engineeering
Air-Tech, Inc., is one of my favorite companies. While I love the people behind this Louisiana company, it isn’t their deep expertise, long experience, or even an endearing sense of humor that surrounds the Bornes — a father and son team to envy.
George Jetson Flying Machine — Now a Reality and a Qualifying Part 103 Ultralight?
Air taxis — eVTOLs — UAVs — UASs — UAMs. I like “multicopters,” but the name game continues.
Maybe these new-fangled flying contraptions have numerous (indecipherable) names because they’re still deciding which way they’re headed?
I believe aircraft like these are nearly inevitable and I not only don’t resist, I’m rather enthusiastic about them. I’d love to get picked up from my driveway and whisked by air to an appointment across town in minutes, free of clogged roads. C’mon, UberAir!
However, that dream may be years in the future. Oh, the technology is nearly ready now. It hasn’t been proven to be in-the-field robust yet but engineers know today most of what they need to make air taxis viable. Their much bigger challenge? Gaining public acceptance and winning regulatory approval. That could take a long time. Meanwhile…
What’s Here TODAY?!
Air taxis may be fuzzy in the distance but another class of these machines is nearly ready for market.
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