Sebring Light Sport Expo 2008
They really need to change the date of this event. For the second time in three years the weather at the U.S. Sport Aviation Expo was awful. The passage of a strong cold front left low ceilings, high winds and frigid temperatures across central Florida. Not the most conducive weather for a Light Sport Plane Expo. But here I found myself, walking among the newest offerings in the fledgling aircraft category called LSA. Unfortunately for the exhibitors, on this day, I was virtually alone. Though the wind was blowing hard (right down the runway), the pattern was busy with demonstration aircraft, a testament to the operational capability of an aircraft weighting less than 1320 lbs.
As I suspected, the Cessna SkyCatcher and the Cirrus SRS were the new “big dogs” at the show. The entrance of these manufacturers into the LSA field has added credibility to the category and generated a huge amount of market interest. The big news at the show was that Cirrus was taking orders for their airplane, something it had not done since its announcement to offer the SRS back at Oshkosh Airventure 2007. This was my first opportunity to see the Cirrus offering up close, though still not in the final configuration and avionics have still not been determined yet. The consensus at the Cirrus booth was that the aircraft was well received and though they would not disclose just how many deposits they had taken, they did tell me they were pleased. Across the ramp at the Cessna booth, the optimism and the activity were equally high. Like their Cirrus counterparts, they too were showing a pre-production prototype. But the Cessna people were fielding lots of questions about Cessna’s decision to build the airplane in China. There were no factory representatives available for me to speak with and the local dealer (from Orlando) wasn’t willing to go on the record, but basically what he said was this; The factory in China where the SkyCatcher will be built has been building aircraft and aircraft sub-assemblies for nearly 50 years and does subcontract work for large aircraft makers like Boeing. The SkyCatcher airframes are shipped to the States and will be assembled at three locations, test flown and outfitted for delivery by authorized Cessna dealers. Cessna is not about to risk its reputation to save a buck and any concerns about the quality of the finished product are simply unfounded. I can certainly understand the decision to build the aircraft overseas, and I would have to agree that Cessna is not going to risk its reputation on an entry level product, so I would expect all due precautions will be taken and the aircraft will meet or exceed the markets expectations. Furthermore, it sounded to me like both Cessna and Cirrus are counting heavily on the flight school business to become their primary customers for these new LSA’s. Both companies had certified aircraft on display as well, lending credibility to the theory that both companies are banking on the tried and true “step up” marketing programs that have worked for aircraft manufacturers for the last 50 years. It is my prediction that success or failure of the Cessna and Cirrus aircraft will be a major factor in the acceptance and assimilation of the Light Sport movement into main stream general aviation, or it’s relegation to “fringe group” status.
Other notable aircraft seen at this year’s Light Sport Expo was the new offering from Flight Design called the CTLS. Offering a larger cabin and easier ingress and egress their marketing material cites the design as being “optimized for American pilots”. I suppose that is a P.C. way of saying U.S. aviators have been super-sized, are larger than their European counterparts, and don’t fit well in the original design, but the result is probably the only LSA cabin I looked at all weekend that would be truly comfortable to my 6’1”, 200 Lb. frame. It certainly shows that they are listening to the market. I do not consider myself large by any stretch of the imagination, but I am not comfortable in most of the available aircraft in this category. At the moment, the CT is the best selling LSA in production. Other new offerings at this years show included the ACA Champ, which I had seen at Oshkosh, two new offerings from RANS, the S-9 LSA and the S-19, and the Gobash 800 from Gobash Aviation, which I had not seen before. I did not make it to any of the forums this year, but I was told attendance was up from last year, a sign that interest is growing in the category. The weather kept the attendance down on Sunday, the day I was there, so I had unfettered access to the displays in the tents, which is a nice switch from other shows where you can’t get within 10 feet of the thing you want to see. All in all, I would speculate that 2008 will be a pivotal year for the light sport category. With Cessna and Cirrus launching their products later this year these aircraft will begin showing up on the flight lines at flight schools across the country. Whether they make the desired impression or not should become evident at the U.S. Light Sport Expo 2009. Let’s hope for better weather then.
By Michael Leighton a 4,500+ CFIIMEI-ATP, as well as an A&P mechanic and former F.A.A. Accident Prevention Counselor. You can reach him at av8tor0414@aol.com, or http://web.mac.com/mkleighton