Training Notes and News

Gordon Suttie, CEO of Light Sport Airplanes West, says clients are seeing the opportunities in light-sport training.

Business has doubled every year and is on track to do it again at the US Flight Academy in Denton, Texas, thanks to traditional flight training in 23 aircraft with 38 instructors. However, the company's sport pilot business is below expectations, so company President Mike Sykes offered an incentive worth $4,000--free sport pilot training.

The deal worked, attracting a customer from North Carolina who bought a new $130,000 Tecnam Sierra aircraft, completed his training in it, was mentored by his instructor all the way home, and now wants to become a private pilot--exactly the goal the light sport aircraft (LSA) movement promised when it began. Sykes has had three additional buyers who became pilots for free.

Traditional training at US Flight Academy has attracted 100 students, with six non-owner students in sport pilot training. However, Sykes is confident in the future of the light sport industry, which explains why he has a $1 million inventory of seven new light sport aircraft sitting in a hangar and two on the way.

"We really expected a lot more. It is starting to pick up," Sykes said. "The economy had something to do with it. People aren't sure which way the economy is going. Also, with so many models [85, according to bydanjohnson.com] people want to let the dust settle and see which one comes out on top." Sykes keeps two light sport aircraft available for flight training.

On average there are 38 new LSAs registered per month, according to bydanjohnson.com, with peaks of 70 to 80 following major trade shows.

Light Sport Airplanes West in Salinas, California, offers three hours of transition training as an incentive for buyers. The company has a $2 million inventory of 19 airplanes in its hangars, and 20 to 30 students in its sport pilot flight school. CEO Gordon Suttie said he has sold about 15 LSA aircraft this year. Sales are steady but below expectations.

"The expectation was it was going to be more," Suttie said. Financing has been difficult to find, although it is available. It takes a little more work to complete each sale, Suttie said. He is expanding sales representation in southern California, and sells in Oregon and Washington.

His typical customer is someone with a pilot's certificate who knows that in coming years it may be difficult or impossible to get his or her medical renewed. He is just now seeing customers who come to light sport aircraft for the unique advantages they offer--a new aircraft with a technologically advanced cockpit at a lower cost and greater fuel economy.

"People are beginning to see the opportunities rather than the challenges. I think it has taken three to four years [since LSAs were first offered] for that message to get across," the Scotland native said.

While typical out-the-door prices are about $130,000, Suttie has sold tricked-out LSAs for $150,000.

Chesapeake Sport Pilot in Maryland offers a contrast to the Texas and California schools in that it has a huge number of students. Tim Adelman, an Annapolis attorney and one of three owners, said he believes his 80 active students make his school the largest in the country. He has seven airplanes available for flight training.

Adelman's focus is on flight training, not sales, but he has sold four or five light sport airplanes over the past year. His secret? Grass-roots advertising for grass-roots flying. Adelman saw older pilots who were concerned about keeping their medicals and is beginning to see not only 40-year-olds looking for a new hobby and returning to flying, but 16- to 20-year-olds--the original target of the light sport movement. He keeps 16 instructors busy.

Adelman attends fly-ins and seeks out the Things to Do group in nearby Baltimore (Washington, D.C., is close and has a group as well) that offers young professionals a series of entertaining outings. One of the things to do is take a half-hour flight with Chesapeake Sport Pilot during an all-day demonstration at a local airport.

Adelman also has a forum on Yahoo where his students can join forces for weekend flying trips. His advertising is mostly word of mouth or people-to-people meetings, and it keeps his fleet of Tecnam and Sky Arrow aircraft aloft, sometimes for 100 hours per month per airplane. He usually has one or two airplanes in maintenance and five available for flying, and a 400-hour month is not uncommon.

There are 125 light sport training schools listed on bydanjohnson.com. A searchable list will tell you if there is one in your state.--Alton K. Marsh

Pan Am Flight Academy to get new name

Pan Am International Flight Academy (PAIFA) in Phoenix, Arizona, will unveil its new name during AOPA Expo 2008 in San Jose, California. AOPA Expo takes place November 6 through 8.

PAIFA was acquired in 2007 by Kamylon Capital, a private equity firm. There are no plans to change PAIFA's ab initio education and training programs. The school will be looking to enhance instruction, increase the breadth of training programs, and expand into new markets over the next few years.

What's in 'AOPA Pilot'?

Here's what you're missing if you don't read AOPA Pilot, the association's flagship magazine published each month for certificated pilots:

• Solo! U.S. Air Force pilots go from kittens to tigers.
• "No Airline Would Ever Hire Me" Logan Flood's story is one of determination and courage.
• Techniques: Missed Approach Musings. Advice on missed approach preparation and temptations.

Are you ready to read about more advanced subjects as these? Just as pilots upgrade to more advanced certificates, it might be time to upgrade your magazine. You can convert your paid membership to AOPA Pilot at any time by calling AOPA toll-free (800-USA-AOPA).

What It Looks Like: Leaking fluids

By Mark Twombly

Telltale spots on your hangar floor should lead you to investigate what could be potentially amiss in your aircraft.

Consider the poor hangar floor. Unless it's painted and swept and cleaned regularly (not likely), a hangar floor is used, abused, and neglected. It deserves better, because a good hangar floor can tell you a lot about your airplane.

Take a look at the drips, drabs, spots, and stains on a typical hangar floor. Most are black and oily. The piston engines that power most light airplanes weep oil for one reason or another, and because of slipstream forces in flight that oil can run back along the entire airframe. Once the airplane is parked in the hangar, oil can drip onto the hangar floor from the nose to the tail.

A few oily spots on the hangar floor are to be expected. If, however, you open the hangar door one morning and see an unusually large, fresh pool of oil, you know something's wrong. It should be easy to trace the source of the oil--just look up at whatever portion of the airplane is over the spot.

Don't just look for black oil drippings, however. Red-colored spots are a warning that there may be a leak somewhere in the hydraulic system. On most light airplanes, the only hydraulic system is the brake system, so that's the place to start looking for problems. Larger, more complex airplanes may have more complex hydraulic systems. The Piper Aztec, for example, has hydraulically actuated landing gear and flaps. A red splotch on the hangar floor beneath a Piper Aztec is reason to look further. It may just be the result of overfilling after routine servicing of the system by the shop, or it could be something more serious.

Get to know your hangar floor. Keep an eye on those spots, and learn to recognize what is normal--and what is cause for finding the source of the leak.

Anatomy of a runway incursion

Few runway incursions--where an aircraft, other vehicle, or personnel enter or cross a runway without permission--can be explained by a single action. Usually there are a series of very small events that build.

A runway incursion that occurred at Daytona Beach International Airport in 2007, involving a Cessna 182 and a Beech King Air 200, offers some lessons. The AOPA Air Safety Foundation's Web site offers an animated replay of the event, including air traffic control audio tapes. Replays like this can allow viewers to imagine themselves operating each aircraft as the event unfolds. The pilot of the Cessna seems to hesitate; perhaps this is his first flight into Daytona Beach. A taxi instruction to "maintain the right side on November" could be a distraction. When the airplane turns onto taxiway N5 and the pilots realize there is a problem, are both trying to stop the aircraft or figure out what happened? How close is the aircraft to the runway?

Watch the replay again, from the perspective of the King Air's pilot. Instructed to taxi for an intersection departure, the flight is cleared for takeoff as it approaches the intersection. Did the rolling takeoff diminish the opportunity for one last quick scan of the runway before adding power? Might the pilot have seen the Cessna as it approached the edge of the runway?

After you view the scenario, supplement your knowledge by taking the Air Safety Foundation's online Runway Safety Course.--Mike Collins

Final Exam

Final Exam is composed of questions similar to those a student may expect on the private pilot knowledge test. Answers are researched by members of the AOPA Pilot Information Center staff and may be found below.

1. If an alteration or repair substantially affects an aircraft's operation in flight, that aircraft must be test flown by an appropriately rated pilot and approved for return to service prior to being operated
1. by any private pilot.
2. with passengers aboard.
3. for compensation or hire.
2. During the preflight inspection, who is responsible for determining the aircraft is safe for flight?
1. The pilot in command.
2. The certificated mechanic who performed the annual inspection.
3. The owner or operator.
3. The minimum flight visibility for VFR flights above 10,000 feet msl and more than 1,200 feet agl in controlled airspace is
1. one mile.
2. three miles.
3. five miles.
4. Unless otherwise authorized, no person may operate an aircraft that has an Experimental certificate
1. beneath the floor of Class B airspace.
2. over a densely populated area or in a congested airway.
3. from the primary airport within Class D airspace.
5. No person may operate an aircraft in acrobatic flight when
1. flight visibility is less than five miles.
2. over any congested area of a city, town, or settlement.
3. less than 2,500 feet agl.
6. A person may not act as a crewmember of a civil aircraft if alcoholic beverages have been consumed by that person within the preceding
1. eight hours.
2. 12 hours.
3. 24 hours.
7. Where may an aircraft's operating limitations be found?
1. On the airworthiness certificate.
2. In the current, FAA-approved flight manual, markings, and placards, or any combination thereof.
3. In the aircraft airframe and engine logbooks.
8. In addition to a valid airworthiness certificate, what documents or records must be aboard an aircraft during flight?
1. Aircraft engine and airframe logbooks, and owner's manual.
2. Radio operator's permit, and repair and alteration forms.
3. Operating limitations and registration certificate.

Final Exam answers

1. The correct answer is B. Before carrying a passenger after an alteration or repair that substantially affects the aircraft's operation in flight, an appropriately rated pilot with at least a private pilot certificate must fly the aircraft and make an operational check of the maintenance performed, and log the flight in the aircraft maintenance records.
2. The correct answer is A. FAR 91.7 holds the pilot in command responsible for determining whether that aircraft is in condition for safe flight. FAR 91.403 places the burden on the owner or operator for maintaining the aircraft in an airworthy condition. The mechanic who performed the annual inspection has no requirements or obligations in determining preflight status of an aircraft.
3. The correct answer is C. The minimum flight visibility for VFR flights at or above 10,000 feet msl and more than 1,200 feet agl in controlled (and uncontrolled) airspace is five statute miles.
4. The correct answer is B. No person may operate an aircraft with an Experimental certificate over a densely populated area or in a congested airway, although such operations are commonly authorized for takeoffs and landings, or when directed by ATC. An aircraft with an Experimental certificate is also prohibited from being used for compensation or hire. The airspace restriction can be eliminated after the aircraft completes its designated flight test period.
5. The correct answer is B. FAR 91.303 prohibits a person from performing aerobatic flight over any congested area of a city, town, or settlement. There is a minimum flight visibility of 3 statute miles required for aerobatic flight and a minimum altitude of 1,500 feet agl.
6. The correct answer is A. No person may act as a crewmember of an aircraft within eight hours after the consumption of any alcoholic beverage or when under the influence of alcohol. This rule is irrespective of any amount of blood-alcohol concentration, meaning that even a single sip of an alcoholic beverage would trigger an eight-hour wait before flying.
7. The correct answer is B. An aircraft's operating limitations are found in several places such as aircraft placards, markings, and the pilot's operating handbook. Neither the airworthiness certificate nor the aircraft maintenance records indicate or contain any operating limitations.
8. The correct answer is C. An aircraft must have the airworthiness certificate, registration certificate, and operating limitations aboard the aircraft. Aircraft maintenance records are not required to be carried aboard the aircraft, nor is a radio operator's permit for domestic operations.

AOPA members can discuss these or any aviation questions with Pilot Information Center staff by calling 800-USA-AOPA or sending an e-mail.