By Dan Johnson
Seaplane LSA Fun Flying...
Spring and summer, the time of year when flying from water becomes the delight of many pilots who have sampled this pleasure. Competing for their purchase in the LSA space, we have the FK Lightplanes Floatplane, FPNA A-22 Cape Town, and Legend AmphibCub. Other entries include SeaRey (close to declaring ASTM compliance); Mermaid (production plans uncertain), Icon (still in development), Colyaer Freedom (no U.S. representative), plus two trike amphibs with SLSA status (the Krucker Cygnet and Ramphos Trident). All this leaves out the SeaMax, which may actually be the strongest player among present SLSA amphibians. Logging its 10th year in 2009 AirMax has produced 98 SeaMaxes for worldwide sale. At $140,000, SeaMax once seemed rather expensive though today, many high-end SLSA command such prices. Consider the general appeal of the seaplane or floatplane compared to a land-only flyer. The seaplane adds many tens of thousands of reasonable landing areas and can access interesting locations unavailable to land planes. Plus, when following a route like a long river, you can reasonably fly only a few hundred feet up for hours, enjoying a view of the planet few people on Earth will ever see. SeaMax USA partner, Malcolm Jones, gained such an experience last year as he flew home from AirVenture, following the mighty Mississippi River through several states. SeaMax is a performance-oriented seaplane that's roomy and upscale inside. It takes a bit of training to fly confidently (honestly, like most LSA) but delivers a very satisfying experience of water flying.
Light-Sport Represents 20-25% of GA Piston Sales
It has to get better! According to GAMA, the organization which represents the Type Certified aircraft world, "2009 worldwide shipments of general aviation airplanes declined for a second year in a row with a total of 2,276 units delivered, a 42.6 percent decrease over the previous year's total of 3,967 airplanes." However, GAMA numbers include twins and turbines, which include all bizjets. A fairer comparison to Light-Sport compares only piston aircraft. Here GAMA says, "The piston airplane segment experienced the greatest decline at 54.5 percent. Shipments totaled 965 airplanes in 2009, compared to 2,119 unit airplanes in 2008. Think about those two numbers. They compare to 234 LSA in the difficult year of 2009, down 42% from 2008's 406-unit performance. LSA sales, as measured by aircraft N-number registrations -- show the ratios between general aviation and Light-Sport. In 2009 LSA sales equated to 24% of GA piston sales; both figures are industry-wide. In 2008 the ratio was 19%, so while significantly off, LSA did slightly better than GA piston sales in 2009. LSA registration numbers are down from 2007 (565 fixed wing aircraft registered) and 2006 (491). But discounting economic woes, the figures appear to show that LSA represent somewhere between 20 and 25% of GA piston sales and I predict this share will rise, with LSA becoming closer to 33 to 50% of all piston sales. When will that happen? It could be another five years, allowing for four factors: general economic recovery; increased acceptance of the LSA concept; continued adoption of ASTM standards in more countries; and the opening of potentially giant markets like China and India. Some experts believe global interest in LSA will also stimulate U.S. sales.
Breezer II, Part II, Act I... All-Metal LSA Redux
It didn’t work out the first time. Breezer I wasn’t quite mature for market. The import structure was unwieldy adding cost and distancing the customer from the source. As Breezer Aircraft took over manufacturing of the all-metal LSA, Breezer II arrived in 2008 joining new leadership in Europe with fresh representation in the USA. As of Sebring 2010, central Florida light aircraft guru Mike Zidziunas -- or simply “Mike Z” -- will become the point man for Breezer Aircraft USA. And he’ll handle things differently from most LSA sellers. His plan is more like that used successfully by Cirrus. The source of the airplanes handles the whole country using representatives in various areas as touch points. “I feel that the conventional dealer network is ponderous and it’s difficult to control the quality of service,” expressed Mike. “To address service after the sale, when we deliver the airplane we offer as part of the purchase of the airplane a 5-hour FITS-style pilot training program. Insurance companies love this. But we also train the customer’s maintenance person at their home airport.” So, recapping: you buy an airplane from Breezer Aircraft USA; Mike will assemble, register, and fly it to your home field. He’ll train you for five hours and he’ll train your maintenance person. If problems arise, he’ll come fix them. That may be too much service provided to sell a large number of airplanes but buyers are likely to feel pampered. Interestingly, this business model is used in the bizjet and exotic car markets as well.
New Tandem SLSA Headed to Market
Most of our tandem Special Light-Sport Aircraft - Legend Cub, Courier, SportCub, Savage, Hornet, Hawk, and SkyArrow - are recreational airplanes. Except for the last one (Italy’s smooth, composite Sky Arrow) most might also fall into the “bush” category in that they are slower-flying, fabric-covered, rugged aircraft suitable for landing on unimproved airstrips. A brand-new tandem, not yet officially a SLSA, is the MySky MS-1, which I call a “performance tandem.” MS-1 aims to go as fast as the category allows (120 knots) using its beefy 120-hp Jabiru 3300 powerplant. MySky’s entry also plans a deluxe interior not found in most currently-approved tandem SLSA. Recently I trekked to California to fly a few hours in the A-16 Sport Falcon from AviaDesign. Company principal, Dave Saunders, has enjoyed a long, successful career creating structural improvements for larger aircraft, including several Beech models, and he has now turned his attention to Light-Sport Aircraft, partly as it means less dealing with FAA and its bureaucracy. I’ll report more as this aircraft comes to market, but regarding my experience flying A-16: entry is about as easy as it gets, thanks to the “air stair” (just like some larger aircraft have); the interior is spacious and comfortable, more so than many other LSA; handling is predictable with no bad traits I could uncover; the airplane is well equipped and expects to have a price somewhere in the $110,000 range though this decision is still being reviewed; visibility is enormous, with the pilot sitting about four feet in front of the wing. Even the aft seat has good room, very good visibility, and full controls... it turns out my smoothest landings were from the rear.
by Dan Johnson