Dan Johnson, a Light Sport Aircraft expert and a columnist for General Aviation News, has released PlaneFinder 2.0 at ByDanJohnson.com.
PlaneFinder 2.0 helps pilots or prospective pilots interested in LSA determine which LSA is best for them. The free service uses 24 criteria to make these determinations, although it not necessary to reflect your preference in all 24 categories for the system to help, according to Johnson.
Since their arrival on the aviation scene in 2004 (with first approvals in 2005), almost 100 models of fully-built Special LSA have been brought to market. These models come from 70 manufacturers, about two thirds of which originate outside the United States. Many have unfamiliar brand names and the sheer number of these models can make it challenging even for veterans.
With flight experience in approximately half the LSA models on the market and regularly studying all of them, Johnson has evaluated all certified Special LSA in each of 24 categories (not all categories apply to all planes). To benefit from the PlaneFinder 2.0 matching system, website visitors need only click a few buttons.
“Each time you click a button, our ‘Matching SLSA’ list instantly changes to reflect all airplanes matching that description,” he said. “The categories are also very simple (this-or-that type) categories, for example, ‘high wing or low wing?”
“We kept PlaneFinder 2.0 lean and light, with quick-read questions and responses,” added Johnson. “If you need more info to select your response, hover over any highlighted title and a hint box will pop up more fully explaining what the category means and how aircraft were evaluated.”
You can change your PlaneFinder 2.0 category responses as often as you wish to refine your ideal feature set – or you can reset and start all over.
When ByDanJohnson.com went live in April 2004 (four months before the SP/LSA rule was announced), the website was organized around a feature called PlaneFinder. Intended as a means to offer advice to pilots seeking their ideal aircraft, PlaneFinder version 1.0 proved to be more complicated than needed, plus the ultralights and kit-built light planes addressed in the original version were giving way to LSA.
“We quietly put PlaneFinder [version 1.0] on hold while we followed the emergence of LSA within the world of aviation,” Johnson said. “But we’re pleased to get PlaneFinder 2.0 live and operating.”
PlaneFinder 2.0 is offered as a free service by ByDanJohnson.com, however registration is required. After leaving your e-mail address, a temporary password will be sent allowing full access to PlaneFinder 2.0 without charge.
For more information: www.bydanjohnson.com
