For my next column for Plane & Pilot, and to grow a dialogue here on the blog (diablogue?), I’m putting out a call to all Light Sport pilots across the country (and around the world!) for your input on some topics we all think about and kick around with our flying pals. Think of it as a kind of open ended survey.
I’d appreciate your take on one, some or all of the questions below: whatever you’ve got time for. You can contribute here, on my Facebook page, or send your thoughts direct to a special email I’ve created at this address: [email protected]
I’ll read and compile everything you send and will include your names unless you’d rather remain anonymous.
The more concise your answers the better but if it takes more words to share your POV, please feel free to go for it and I’ll do my best to cherry pick the best insights and info.
This is just the beginning. I hope to do more than one of these: we’ll see how it goes.
Thank you all in advance and here we go:
1. Do you currently own or rent an LSA? Details please, i.e. are you a sole owner or in a partnership? If you rent, do you tend to rent the same LSA or a variety of models? From the same location/FBO or more than one?
2. What licenses do you have? Details: if you have a Sport Pilot License, how many hours did it take, and did you have another license first.
3. If you have a Sport Pilot License, what signoffs do you have (controlled airports, taildragger, float plane etc.)? Do you plan to get a higher-level (Private Pilot etc.) license?
4. Where did you get your training?
5. How often do you fly an LSA? Total hours/year or flights per month etc.
6. How far do you typically travel to find an LSA dealer for service and maintenance?
7. Is the high average cost of a new LSA preventing you from buying? Do you rent primarily because of that?
8. What do you most like and dislike about Light Sport flight?
9. In your opinion, what are the greatest challenges facing the industry in the five years ahead (assuming the economy recovers)?
10. What kind of LSA flying do you most enjoy? (Long trips, around the patch, $25 burgers etc.)
11. Do you usually fly alone or with a passenger?
12 Have you found the Sport Pilot restrictions (10,000′ max altitude, no night flying, 120 knot max level speed etc.) a significant detractor from the kind of flying you’d like to do?
Wow, the more I get into this, the more I can see we’re just scratching the surface.
Let’s start with those…and one more question: what question would you most like to have answered about LSA?
Thanks all. I’ll be writing this up over the next week and will also continue to post other questions and keep these running too.
