SPLOG By DAN JOHNSON Plenty of aviation enterprises face challenges, but one of the toughest has to be starting a new airshow event, such as last weekend’s Midwest LSA Expo at Mt. Vernon Outland Airport (MVN) in Mt. Vernon, Ill. Not only must organizers get myriad details right and try to satisfy a broad range […]
A first look at new LSA tandems
SPLOG By DAN JOHNSON Here come the new tandems — and I do mean new! Suspending a full flight trial regime, U.S.-based MySky One took a long maiden voyage from Daytona Beach, Florida, to Oshkosh. Just last month, the Slovak Republic-based sportShark, from Shark.Aero, took its first flight. Tandems seat the occupants fore and aft […]
SeaRey flies high
SPLOG By DAN JOHNSON The SeaRey from Progressive Aerodyne is an all-American brand making the move from a kit-only operation to one providing fully-built SLSA and, eventually, ELSA kits. SeaRey marketing man Darrell Lynds reported a spectacular Oshkosh: “We sold 11 kit SeaRey aircraft (the LSX) and four SLSA versions to be called the SeaRey […]
Flying Saints: Who is watching over pilots?
I was glad to find out who’s on my team. I safely finished my trip and decided to thank the patron saint of my profession by learning more about her.
Strong survive tough economy
SPLOG By DAN JOHNSON We continue to see the effects of the last year of economic turmoil in LSA market shares. An updated ranking of market share shows the top 20 (of 70 total) producers still represent almost 90% of total SLSA registrations. (For the record: Registrations on the FAA’s database are not the same […]
Who is the LSA avionics leader?
SPLOG By DAN JOHNSON Ever since steam gauges gave way to glass screens, the players in the avionics game have changed. Analog instruments were made by many companies and became such commodities that you may not be able to name a brand. But as computers entered our cockpits, first via GPS and later with multi-function […]
Florida’s controversial use tax clarified
By Jennifer Renner-Gowan The Florida Department of Revenue has given the green light to visitors to bring their new airplanes to the state. The state has a long-standing statute that requires sales tax to be paid on new aircraft purchased elsewhere and then brought to Florida within six months of the date of purchase. If […]
Goulian to receive Bill Barber Award
By Amanda Betts, EAA PR Airshow pilot Michael Goulian will receive the 2009 Bill Barber Award for Showmanship during EAA AirVenture 2009, according to World Airshow News. The award will be presented to Goulian at EAA‘s Theater in the Woods on July 27. He joins a list of honorees that reads like an airshow hall […]
Shaking off the gloom
By DAN JOHNSON The darkest hours of 2008 were lightened considerably by the rock-solid start to the year witnessed at the 2009 U.S. Sport Aviation Expo in Sebring, Florida, in January. Record crowds, numerous airplane orders, and the sellout of inventory by some exhibitors helped to shake off the gloom of the rotten economy. That […]