Light Sport Aircraft

Today marks the opening of the U.S Sport Aviation Expo held at Sebring Regional Airport in Florida. You can visit www.sport-aviation-expo.com for more information. I’ve never attended this annual event; although several people I know regularly attend. Having always been engaged in recreational aviation I like many in the industry have watched the introduction of the Light Sport Aircraft (LSA) and the Sport Pilot (SP) certificate. The LSA continues to evolve and slowly trend upwards as a new market. Granted there are those LSA that have transitioned from the ultralight world, but on the other side there are new LSA of traditional design and constructed methods and new designs including the use of advanced composites and modern avionics. Along with the LSA came a new FAA Repairman Certificate with two ratings; an Inspection Rating and a Maintenance Rating. There are minimum requirements for training in order to obtain the LSA Repairman Certificate and ratings, plus many LSA manufacturers require some targeted training on the specific type. As certificated FAA Airframe and Powerplant Mechanics we can perhaps argue these LSA maintenance training requirements may seem minimal. The LSA Repairman’s Certificate allows someone to perform maintenance and the annual condition inspection on Special (S) LSA’s and Experimental (E) LSA’s for themselves or for compensation or hire. Additionally, a current holder of an A&P certificate can perform maintenance and inspections on LSA. For those of you involved in LSA or other forms of recreational aviation, this is not news. Has LSA created any business opportunity for the GA mechanic, shop, or FBO? Most of these new LSA have a high-price tag. Do these owners bring their $100,000 plus LSA to your shop with experienced A&P mechanics? Does anyone have any personal experience to share? Ron