You are spot on in your analysis. And the regular FBOS and instructors could care less. Trikes seem to be the exception.
Sent from my Verizon Wireless 4GLTE smartphone
----- Reply message -----
From: "Alex" <acensor@fastmail.fm>
To: <Sport_Aircraft@yahoogroups.com>
Subject: Light-Sport Aircraft Yahoo group Re: sport pilot training in challenger or quicksilver
Date: Sun, May 29, 2011 7:11 am
From: "Alex" <acensor@fastmail.fm>
To: <Sport_Aircraft@yahoogroups.com>
Subject: Light-Sport Aircraft Yahoo group Re: sport pilot training in challenger or quicksilver
Date: Sun, May 29, 2011 7:11 am
There's a sport pilot training school is California still doing sport pilot training in ELSA Challengers.
The CFI wrote this to me months ago:
"Thanks for inquiring into flight training with me at my flight school. As you may know, the FAA phased out training in experimental aircraft, unless it's the owner's aircraft.
So I charge $125/hr. for a one-hour lesson, but the plane flying is free. That way, the FAA can't say I'm charging for the use of my plane. "
I think he may be on very gray ground but for now he's doing it.
Write me for contact info.
GENERALLY unless you are near one of the few FBOs that have a newer expensive SLSA for training/rental use the door to sport pilot training is hard to find unless you own your own ELSA or amature built LSA and can find a CFI that's comfortable using it as a trainer.
That's surely part of the reason there are so very few people coming into aviation via the sport pilot route. It has in my opinion prettty much been a failure if its purpose was to open the door to flying to more wannabe pilots. There are only about 4000 people who have come into flying by getting a sport pilot license. According to one of the sport pilot specialist advisors at EAA as many as 2000 are former previously experienced ultralight pilots who were able to get their UL hours and experience grandfarthered in and creditied toward getting sport pilot certified.
On the other hand if the sport pilot rule was intended (as some suggest) to put a damper on UL flying it has succeeded wonderfully. It is impossible for someone to go out today and buy or build a part 103 UL and get any low cost training... as it used to be possible There are no more two seat ultralight trainers, no more BFI's (basic flight instructors). It is also very very difficult, even at the much higher standard CFI training rates, to get _any_ training suitable to get a complete newbie set up to strap into a single seat part 103 UL and takeoff. Statistics are as far as I know difficult to get, but it is certain that since the sport pilot rule killed two seat UL trainers and BFI's off there are practically no new pilots coming into flying via the UL route and after the current generation of remaining UL pilots die off, retire from flying UL flying will be a tiny fraction of what it was pre 2004.
So, whether putting a damper on UL was intended or an unintended consequence of the sport pilot rules, having closed the door to UL on net the sport pilot certification as likely reduced the flow of folks into aviation in the USA.
Alex
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