Next Meeting

Our next meeting will be Monday, March 21st at 7:30pm.

Snacks: Last names starting with G-H.

Table of Contents

• President's Report for March 2011
• Board report
• What the heck in an E-LSA?
• Calling All Members!
  
  
• Items For Sale
• 2011 Calendar Of Events
• Who Brings Snacks????
• Web Page Newsletter

President's Report for March 2011

by John Nys

March program

Our program this month is the display and discussion of a RV 9A built by a past member of Chapter 10. The airplane was built by Michael Lewis of Terlton, Ok. For those of you who are not familiar with Terlton, it is west of Sand Springs about 20 miles and north of the expressway. He completed the aircraft and licensed it in December 2009. Cancer took his life a few months later. He never got to fly the aircraft. It is currently for sale, listed by Dan Howard Aircraft at Jones Riverside.

Sun 'N Fun

Fly safe, be safe
See you Monday night
John Nys

Board report

by Mark Chouinard

Hopefully this will be the last of the chilly board meetings for the year… I’m looking forward to spring! Mike Aichele recently attended the EAA Chapter Leadership Course in Oshkosh, where they discussed several ideas for reinvigorating the chapters and our events. He may be sharing some of those details with the group, so I’ll not go over all that we discussed. I will say that the chapter will be undergoing several worthwhile changes in the coming weeks and months. We are currently printing up business cards that we will be handing out at local events that include our meeting times, location, a map and contact information. Our web site will also be changing to a more modern and user friendly format. We may also start to break our meeting into segments (i.e. business, tech tips, gadgets, program, etc.). If anyone has any ideas on how we might better organize our meetings or events, let’s hear them! We would also like to organize a couple of workshops… maybe welding, sheet metal work, riveting, etc. If there is a specific area that any of our members would be interested in learning about or teaching, please let us know. If there isn’t any interest for these things then it probably won’t happen. One area that that we ARE going to address more vigorously are our youth activities… primarily the Young Eagles program. Speaking of Young Eagles, we just received a letter from national stating that we earned 45 credits (a $225 value for the chapter) for Young Eagle operations in 2010. Thanks to those that participated... Claremore gang.

Mark

What the heck in an E-LSA?

Light Sport Flying by Ed Downs

The subject of an aircraft certification, be it standard, special or experimental can make even the most geeky tax lawyer think they have fallen down the rabbit hole, especially when talking about Experimental aircraft. So let’s keep this month’s column about the real world of buying, selling and using an E-LSA airplane. The fact is, one is likely to come across a “for sale” ad featuring an E-LSA that can look inviting. The price may be quite attractive, but just what the heck is an E-LSA?

First, let’s take a general look at any airplane that is certified as an “Experimental” airplane. Actually, there is no such thing as an “Experimental” airplane, even if the word “Experimental” is written on the side of the plane. Experimental certification always carries a second word (or two) which describes what sub-part of Experimental we are talking about, and there are numerous sub-parts. For example one might see a nifty little RV-12 (it meets the FAA definition of an LSA) from Van’s aircraft sitting on the ramp with the word “Experimental” prominently displayed. This RV-12 may have been sold as a kit that meets the new FAA “51% rule” and was certified as Experimental-Amateur built. This means the builder of the plane can perform all of his/her own maintenance, make changes to the design, (including engine changes) conduct the annual condition inspection and pretty much fly when and where he/she wants. Sitting next to that RV-12 might be a weird looking war bird from some country whose name you cannot pronounce, made by a manufacturer best known for cranking out refrigerators that do not work. Our “war bird” will also have the word “Experimental” clearly displayed, but is certified as Experimental-Exhibition. This critter may have significant maintenance issues and require each and every flight to be approved by the FAA. Get the point? Not all Experimentals are treated equally.

Let us no assume that our fictitious ramp has yet another RV-12 parked on it, again with the word “Experimental” emblazoned in plain view. But a closer look at the paperwork states that this RV-12 is certified as an Experimental-LSA (E-LSA). This is possible because the good folks at Van’s built a single, ready to fly version of the RV-12 that met all of the ASTM Consensus Standards and was certified as an S-LSA. Having certified that single airplane as a S-LSA, Van’s is now allowed to produce a kit version of the RV-12 that does NOT have to meet the “51% rule” of an amateur built aircraft, and may be delivered more than 51% complete. This E-LSA version of the RV-12 MUST be built exactly as the original S-LSA version (no modifications) and meet strict QA standards defined by the factory. The builder/owner may perform maintenance on the completed airplane, but may not conduct the annual condition inspection unless he/she has completed the FAA approved, 16 hour, training program. This E-LSA version of the RV-12 may not be used for commercial flight training (like in a flight school) but may be flown by the owner for recreational purposes (including personal flight instruction), with few restrictions. The good news about owning the E-LSA version of a certified S-LSA airplane is that you know it meets stringent certification standards and can be delivered almost ready-to-fly. Also, once certified as an E-LSA (remember, exactly like the original S-LSA) the E-LSA can be modified as the owner desires, just so long as those modifications do not take it out of the FAA definition of an LSA. Okay, that was not too confusing, so let’s take the next step.

A news release from the EAA was issues in November, 2010, about a Letter of Deviation Authority (LODA) for commercial training operations of E-LSA aircraft. It addressed a version of the E-LSA certification process that is completely different than that just described. Remember, the creation of the LSA definition and certification process was, in part, an attempt to bring illegal, fat, two place ultra light training aircraft (no “N” numbers of any kind) under some form of certification and inspection process. Basically, when the Sport Pilot rule was passed in Autumn 2004, owners of these illegal, fat, two place ultra light training aircraft were told “the jig is up, you can’t keep flying these illegal airplanes forever.” But the FAA realized that these trainers were providing a commercial service and successfully training reasonable safe ultra light pilots. So, the FAA came up with a remarkably neat compromise. Basically, the FAA said, “You can keep flying these illegal ultra light ultra lights as commercial trainers for four years (2008), after which they become a lawn ornament, unless you certify them as an E-LSA, using a very simplified inspection process. If you go the E-LSA route, the PIC must be at least a Sport Pilot, and commercial training use may be extended until January 2010. After the January, 2010 date, these converted ultra lights may be flown recreationally only, no commercial flight training.” Again, these E-LSAs can be maintained by the owner, but the annual condition inspection must be done by a certified mechanic or owner who has received a special 16 hour training course.

Actually, it was a fair deal. It was expected that by 2010, a bunch of former ultra light manufacturers would have brought their designs up to ASTM Consensus Standards and have them ready-to-fly for under $40K. That did not happen. As it stands now, the two place ultra light trainers that were in use to commercially train the legitimate single place ultra light owner may no longer be used. New S-LSAs cost far too much for the ultra light schools to purchase and the safety of legitimate, single place ultra light flying is at serious risk. Owners of these E-LSA “ultra light trainers” have been asking the FAA to initiate a Letter of Deviation Authority (LODA) process that would allow reputable ultra light schools to seek an exemption to the rule that now forbids them from using their E-LSAs for commercial training. The fight is on and the EAA is carrying the banner on behalf of safety and common sense.

So there, in a nutshell, is the story of E-LSAs. Buyer beware! You stand a good chance of getting a nice airplane if looking to buy an E-LSA that is based upon an S-LSA like the RV-12. But, be sure to see if that E-LSA has been modified AFTER the E-LSA certification in a manner that might affect safety or operation. Remember that an ultra light design that was “grandfathered” into an E-LSA certification status may have met few, if any, design or manufacturing standards. Finally, keep in mind that simply having an “N” number on an airplane does not mean that it has met any particular certification standard. Obtaining an “N” number is simply a registration process that can be done on the web and has nothing to do with certification of the airplane.

Obviously, a reader who is considering getting into the experimental world of E-LSAs must take the time to learn the in-and-outs of how the rules work. Start your search for more information at www.eaa.org. Be very careful when talking to your “local expert”, e-mail list participant or blogger. Experimental certification is a shadowy, but wonderful world that can offer some great ownership deals. Just be sure you know what you are getting into!

Calling All Members!

by Mark  Chouinard

Are you working on a project, or have you completed a project that you would like to share with others? Perhaps you have a tech tip, or a product that you have used that you can share?

Without your participation, the newsletter will start to get pretty thin. As the flying season picks up, there ought to be more opportunities to tell stories… why not share your adventures with our readers?

Anyone who wants to contribute, please send your writings and photos to me at hangar10@cox.net.  

Items For Sale

(Please note the "9" preceding everyone's email address in our newsletter. Delete the "9" if you want to email anyone. This is to help deter junk mail that gets picked up on the internet.)

1966 Cessna 150F
5800 TTAF, 15 SMOH
new paint and interior
new windsheild
new encoder
King 170B with glideslope
Narco AT-50 with mode C
Asking $22,750 
call Jim at 918-948-3420

FOR SALE BY OWNER
Glasair I/II RG
300 hrs TTAF
Lycoming O-320 70 hrs SMOH
Lightspeed electronic ignition
High compression pistons
Large rudder
Dual sliding canopys
Panel mount GPS, xponder, intercom and more
New 3 blade MT propeller
New custom interior
Extended wing tips 80% completed
Ready for your paint
$47,000
See at Gundy's (O38), Owasso, OK
Contact Mark Fridley @ 918-274-3574 or 9rmfridley@cox.net

Franklin Aircraft Engine
Model 4AC171 60 HP
37/8 bore x 33/8 stroke 6/2 C.R.
s/n 2052
17/32 venturi
Eisenman magnetos
complete
No log book
$1000
Contact Ken Smith 698-4129.

Lycoming O-235-0
T.C. 223, 100 HP, 2600 RPM, SM 1571-15
Two magnetos, no carburetor, otherwise complete.
No logbook
$1,000
Contact Ken Smith 698-4129.

Lycoming O-290-D2
135 HP, T.C. 229, no magnetos, has vacuum pump
engine damaged at L/H magneto mount area
L/H crankcase broken out
accessory case broken out
data plate is titled Lycoming Aviation Engine
No logbook
$1,000
Contact Ken Smith 698-4129

Acreage for sale
2.5 Acres with 330’ of Runway frontage
Airman Acres Airfield, Collinsville OK
Sets on dead end road.
No covenants.
Secluded area.
Build exactly what you desire.
$67,500
Contact Darren 918-857-2728

1967 Beech Musketeer A23-24
200 HP fuel injected
IFR capabnle but not certified since 8/2008
Flies and looks great.
Hangar at Pryor but can be moved to Harvey Young or Gundy's.
Seeking partner.
Contact Larry Murray 918-557-3020.

Precious Pete
Basic Pietenpol
85 HP Continental
Enlarged, extended 2-piece wing
Steel tube fuselage
Roomy cockpits
Metal prop
Flies great!
Contact Roger White 918-698-3771.

Quickie Q200 Project – $6000
Includes disassembled zero-time O200 engine.
Go to home.swbell.net/blsh948/Q200/Q200.htm for details and pictures.
Contact Ron Cross 918-838-7992 9blsh948@swbell.net.

To list your aviation items for sale, contact newsletter editor Mark Chouinard .

2011 Calendar Of Events

To add an item to our calendar, get the information to the newsletter editor Mark Chouinard. See the contact info on the home page for e-mail, phone, and mail addresses.

Recurring events

Who Brings Snacks????

If your last name starts with D through F then February is your month to bring a snack for the meeting.

Web Page Newsletter

If you would like to receive the newsletter electronically off of the chapter web site (www.eaa10.org) every month, just send Secretary Marvin Williams or our web editor Bob Minich an e-mail. This action saves the chapter money on printing and mailing costs, which in turn, helps keep your dues low. It's really simple to do. We send you a monthly e-mail notice when the latest newsletter is posted online. Just click on the provided link and you are there!

If you would like to be on the e-mail list for meeting and event reminders, or if you would like to receive the newsletter electronically, which is full color and delivered days before the print version… please send your e-mail address to: eaa.ch10@gmail.com.