Dan Johnson, president of the Light Aircraft Manufacturers Association, is an expert on Light Sport Aircraft. Pilots interested in a floatplane LSA and airplane sellers seeking floats lost a good supplier recently when Baumann Floats, based at the South St. Paul, Minnesota, airport closed its doors. In an email, General Manager Joe Birkemeyer wrote, “Due […]
Allegro: Made in the USA
One of the early success stories in Light-Sport aviation was the Allegro. The #3 Special LSA to be approved started out so strong that even after three years of no sales following the collapse of the Czech Fantasy Air company, Allegro still holds the #14 spot on the SLSA Market Share chart. When Fantasy Air […]
How important is FAA oversight of LSA?
Weight shift instructor and FAA Designated Airworthiness Representative (DAR) Terri Sipantzi wrote an excellent editorial about the FAA’s plan to start inspecting new SLSA or new companies producing LSA. Terri’s piece was well written and accurate. He quoted me, but I find it surprising to be the only one publicly talking about this matter even […]
LSA companies expanding in two directions
New models range from single seaters to four-place planes Dan Johnson, president of the Light Aircraft Manufacturers Association, is an expert on Light Sport Aircraft. An amazing thing happened on the way to AERO 2011, Europe’s very popular show in the south of Germany. Light-Sport Aircraft (LSA) companies — a large and growing flock of […]
More LSAs powered by Lycoming
Dan Johnson, president of the Light Aircraft Manufacturers Association, is an expert on Light Sport Aircraft. While the Continental O-200 engine — used in several LSA — attains Chinese ownership, Lycoming appears to be making a stronger push to enlist LSA manufacturers. One example at AERO 2011 was the upgraded Tecnam Eaglet, which airshow visitors […]
Aviation double header
Professional sports created the term “double header” to refer to two games played back to back. For the most part in aviation, show producers work hard to secure a part of the calendar where they don’t compete with other shows. Indeed, the work schedule of many recreational aviation professionals revolves around four major shows: The […]
The year of the ELSA?
Dan Johnson, president of the Light Aircraft Manufacturers Association, is an expert on Light Sport Aircraft. One of the “diamonds in the rough” of the LSA movement has been the kit LSA or Experimental LSA or simply ELSA. For the first five years of Light-Sport Aircraft, fully manufactured Special Light-Sport Aircraft dominated the sales figures. […]
Seventh Sebring sustains show’s success story
Dan Johnson, president of the Light Aircraft Manufacturers Association, is an expert on Light Sport Aircraft. If you’ll pardon a little fun in my title, I’m pleased to offer a report from Chairman Bob Woods on the seventh running of the Sebring U.S. Sport Aviation Expo, abbreviated by many to simply Sebring LSA Expo. The […]
Sun (and Fun) shine
Dan Johnson, president of the Light Aircraft Manufacturers Association, is an expert on Light Sport Aircraft. In the world of recreational flying — that portion of aviation that does NOT deal with transportation as a core activity — the Sun ’n Fun air show signals the beginning of the flying season. While aviators in the […]