Light Sport Aircraft Cert.
- Thread starter TimmMech
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“Any” flight school is a maybe. Reasonable or not, I know some schools are already wondering about whether there is some risk in training someone who has never qualified for a medical.
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Tim, as mentioned, the certificate level is “sport pilot”. The aircraft is LSA. I don’t know the San Diego area well enough, but I understand Sling Flight Academy has a KSEE location. And, as mentioned, the LSA category is expanding to cover many “traditional” trainers and other airplanes.
Question, though. You say, “back into flying,” does that mean you started taking lessons and quit or that you are already a private pilot and lapsed? That could make a difference in your options,
rgb30b
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Hmm, never qualified for a medical, and never taken one becuase its not necessary for a Sport Pilot certificate are 2 totally different things! I know some schools cant wrap their heads around modern avionics automation, autopilots, WAAS, and parachutes and other "safety features" ... and prefer 6 pack steam gauges, VOR and a compass. MOSAIC "will" change GA. I suppose they can get on board, or lose paying customers.
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Don't get so excited
. "Never qualified for a medical " just means never went though the qualification process. Not, couldn't pass if they wanted to. I don't think we're in the same neighborhood as the resistance to new tech 20 years ago. I say that because the flight schools I know of that are asking the questions are not in some outlying area where they have no radios. They are flight schools and organizations with a fleet that is mostly modern glass.
What is is, I think, more similar to is the early concerns, however unfounded, about BasicMed.
BTW, I made no attempt to get a reasonable sample, but I asked a flight schools that specializes in LSAs the proportion of the people they trained who went for their private rather than their sport certificate. The answer I got was 99% private.
I think MOSAIC is going to make some changes to GA, but that may be on the aircraft certification side rather than on the pilot certification side. The light-sport aircraft category lies between experimental an Part 23, and allows for a level of development more similar to experimental. Dynon HDX and, if I recall correctly, Garmin's G5 and G3X started in the Experimental/LSA world. Modern LSAs have incredible avionics. The RV12 LSA I have access to is equipped with dual-screen G3X, GTN650xi, and a GFC500 autopilot. That all makes modern LSAs an extremely attractive option for private and commercial. And while it's already possible to get the instrument rating in one, so long as you stay out of the clouds., Bristell is already talking about it's next generation being fully IFR capable.
But I'm not as confident that access to a wider variety of aircraft - non-LSA as well as LSA - is going to suddenly increase the numbers of sport pilot applicants as opposed to existing pilots who are unable to unwilling to qualify for BasicMed.
I don't think the document addressed this, but what would have been interesting is if an applicant can take a Private Pilot checkride while exercising Sport Pilot privileges without a 3rd class or Basic Med.
Half Fast
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Maybe I don't understand your question. How could an applicant take a PP checkride until he's done night flight, which even for SPs under MOSAIC will require a medical or Basic Med?
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Nothing changed in 61.23(a)(3) which requires a third class or BasicMed "When taking a practical test in an aircraft for a recreational pilot, private pilot, commercial pilot, or airline transport pilot certificate, or for a flight instructor certificate..."
Dana
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The required night flight experience need not be as PIC, in fact almost certainly won't be.
That may be an oversight they'll address at a later date. But for now, yup
It wasn't a question. What I'm saying is that the potential for such a (intentional? unintentional?) loophole could have existed and it would have been interesting if it did.
Wait, what? I haven't heard about this one.
From quick research, I guess you can fly IFR and night now with SP but need a medical. Did I miss anything?
Neil Rubin
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No IFR for sport pilots. Yes IFR with properly approved LSA for private pilot and above with instrument rating. Yes night for sport pilots with medical or BasicMed and required training and endorsement (basically you need the same night training as private pilots get, and you need to meet the same medical standards—you aren’t really saving much aside from not having to take the private pilot checkride and avoiding a few extra training requirements for private pilots vs. sport pilots).
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Don’t confuse aircraft certification with pilot privileges.
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Why do you think it’s an oversight?
Dana
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Because it's silly to require a medical for one single flight in a pilot's life. Still, there are sillier laws...
Neil Rubin
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You are talking about check rides for certificates that still require a medical (or BasicMed) to exercise any of their privileges (with some limited exceptions for the flight instructor certificate). It doesn’t seem crazy for the FAA to require you to prove you can meet all of the requirements (including having a medical or BasicMed) to legally exercise pilot privileges before handing you a piece of plastic that says you are allowed to exercise those privileges.
And they have not done so for four decades, at least. Even before basic med and sport pilot, you only needed a third class for any checkride (up to ATP). The requirement for a 2nd for Commercial or 1st for ATP disappeared on the late 80's I believe.
Kritchlow
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Heck, you used to need a 1st class just to take the ATP WRITTEN !!
They didn't want you to die from a heart attack while taking the test.