Experimenter is a magazine created by EAA for people who build airplanes. We will report on amateur-built aircraft as well as ultralights and other light aircraft.
Issue link: http://experimenter.epubxp.com/i/149316
The ability to do your own annual condition inspection after taking a 16-hour course and the desire to make changes to the airplane are the primary reasons owners opt for the experimental classification. The manufacturers of the Carbon Cub, the best-selling U.S.-made LSA in 2012, have stated that almost all their aircraft go out the door as S-LSA, but they are quickly changed to E-LSA with the addition of oversize tundra tires. Those owners can continue to make modifications, provided the changes are entered into the airframe log and that the airplane is tested solo and endorsed by the pilot before taking passengers. tions don't require any new official documentation other than a new weight and balance sheet. The S-LSA entering service now will be around for a long time. I think it quite likely that all will eventually become experimental, and we will see them in service for a long time in highly modified versions. I'm serious; you can cut the wings off an E-LSA, modify or swap wings, change the landing gear, and do anything you could do to an amateurbuilt airplane, provided it stays within the LSA definition. Anyone can do the work, provided the aircraft is flighttested and signed off by a pilot. The owner, even the next owner, can do the annual inspection by taking the threeday inspection course for that category. Most modifica- It's almost too good to be true. Soon we will see more used LSA that have been modified by the second or third owner. That expensive LSA you can only dream about will eventually be available as a used experimental airframe suitable for alternative engines and application of whatever flat panel display device or other human interface you can devise. Don't think it's only for the metal, tube, and cloth airplanes. The world's best-selling all-composite airplanes such as the Flight Designs CT line are also being converted. Follow this discussion thread on the CT Flier website. There have been a few times in the history of aviation when we get a good break. The establishment of the experimental amateur-built category was one of them, and the freedom to fly ultralights under FAR Part 103 with no pilot certificate or vehicle certification was certainly another of them. We still have both those freedoms, and now we add a new one—the ability to buy a completed airplane and then customize it to your heart's content while doing your own maintenance and inspections. Te outboard end of Ray's full-span faperon. Photography by Dan Grunloh EAA Experimenter 35