Is sport aviation dying

[mhaleem]

It may be too early with the recent basic med passage, but do you guys/gals see a decline in folks pursuing sport pilot training as a result of the new rules?

[joey4420]

I got my sport cert on May 30th. Basic med for me wasn't even an option since I have never had a third class medical.

Will people that are eligible for basic med fly under sport rules (maybe, depends on what their goals are)?

Will people like myself that just want to fly and don't mind being a sport pilot get their sport cert? Yep.

I even purchased an Ercoupe because it fits what my mission is: Fun

Will I eventually get my private? Maybe, depends on if I feel I need to fly more than myself and one other person.

[MrMorden]

General Aviation itself is dying, so...yes.

But I don't know that Sport Aviation (meaning sport pilot / LSA rules) are dying any faster than the rest of the hobby. There are still a lot of people who can't or don't want to get a medical who will keep flying SP/LSA. Plus I think most pilots who really look at the flying they do with an objective eye, will find that an LSA suits their mission quite well and very economically, whether or not they have a medical.

[TimTaylor]

I would guess that most people who can fly under Basic Med are already pilots. Otherwise, why would they have held a medical within the past 10 years? Of course, there are some exceptions before someone corrects me. Pilots in training either want to fly Light Sport or heavier aircraft. If Light Sport, they don't need a medical and Basic Med is not a factor. If they want a Private, they need a 3rd class medical and Basic Med is not a factor, at least initially. So, I would think Basic Med does not have a significant effect on pilot training other than a reduction in older pilots transitioning to LSA.

[smutny]

It's my understanding that the LSA segment is the only part of GA that is showing growth right now.

If we can learn to market to the general public and not only to ourselves, I believe that the growth potential can be increased even more.

[roger lee]

Still growing and new planes coming into the US and different models. GA is the one suffering.

[mhaleem]

I flew an Evektor SportStar for the first time today and absolutely loved it!!!

[Wm.Ince]

I flew an Evektor SportStar for the first time today and absolutely loved it!!!

Okay.
So what did you love about it?
Disregard the above question, if it's the only airplane you have ever flown.

[c162pilot]

In my case I previously owned a 2011 DA40-XLS but was flying it on a Special Issuance and several years ago decided to let my medical lapse as the required yearly medical tests where getting too costly and burdensome, relegating me to flying with friends who where also CFI's. In December 2016 the DA40 was sold and I started looking around for a S-LSA giving serious consideration to the RV12, Sling, Flight Design, Bristel and Tecnam family. I was closing in on a purchase when on May 11th I was able to get a BasicMed from my AME (who is also my PCP) and for me that changed everything. For $125K, I was able to purchase a sporty and agile 2003 Grumman Tiger with an excellent WAAS Garmin Stack and S-TEC autopilot with GPSS that is IFR capable, flies about 135 KTAS and I am never flying over gross for. My only regrets are I am now back to 10 GPH of 100 LL and the high price of certified avionics compared to Rotax powered S-LSA's with G3X or Dynon HDX panels however on the plus side I feel more than comfortable with the Tiger beeing tied down on the ramp whereas for a S-LSA based on all the advice I had received I was looking at the cost of a hanger ($400 vs $1,200 a month at my airport) . With BasicMed in hand when I considered the trade-off between new or nearly new S-LSA and the older certified Tiger I decided to go down the route of the Tiger. I should say that if I was considering a seventies vintage PA28 I may have made a different decision despite the lower acquisition cost. Net net based on my own experience do I think that BasicMed may impact the sales of S-LSA's the answer is yes.

With that said given the new Part 23 rules coming into effect at the end of this month perhaps we will see new certified planes making there way over the pond from Europe that are manufactured by the same S-LSA companies but with higher gross weights and faster speeds that can be flown by pilots with BasicMed. A 2 seat airplane with a Rotax 915iS, controllable propeller, 1,800 LB gross weight with a G3X or Dynon panel that is IFR capable and capable of speeds of 150 KTAS with a BRS would be compelling.

[mhaleem]

Most of my flight time (300hrs) is in the C172, and I've flown the Remos GX, Allegro, Piper Sportcruiser. The Sportstar felt not much different than the piper archer and Cessna 172s that I've flown. I also liked the visibility with the canopy and the basic instrumentation.

[Wm.Ince]

. . . "A 2 seat airplane with a Rotax 915iS, controllable propeller, 1,800 LB gross weight with a G3X or Dynon panel that is IFR capable and capable of speeds of 150 KTAS with a BRS would be compelling."

Which airplane are you specifically referring to?

[HAPPYDAN]

Yes. GA (period) is dying in the USA. It's become too complicated, too convoluted, and too expensive.

[TimTaylor]

Yes. GA (period) is dying in the USA. It's become too complicated, too convoluted, and too expensive.

I've been flying 53 years. The only part of this I agree with is the expensive part. What could be easier than to jump in our little LSA's and fly from point A to point B with GPS and moving maps? Downloading weather information to our iPads is much easier than calling Flight Service and getting a briefing. We're not drawing lines on charts and calculating magnetic headings and wind corrections. Weight and balance is automatic with a Garmin 300 on a SkyCatcher. Dealing with airspace and ATC is little changed except the airspace names make more sense than they used to. Learning to fly has not changed and is even simplier if you go for Sport Pilot. We can now fly LSA without an FAA medical and larger aircraft under Basic Med. There is just nothing about it that is more complicated or convoluted in my opinion. That doesn't mean it's not an activity that takes a great deal of time, money, and effort to accomplish and not everyone is cut out to become a pilot, especially if you wait until later in life to take it up. Everything is more difficult at 60 than it was at 20.

[Wm.Ince]

Yes. GA (period) is dying in the USA. It's become too complicated, too convoluted, and too expensive.

After 49 years of flying, military, corporate, airlines and light sport, I have to concur with you.
Any way you slice it, it sure isn't the way it used to be . . . and for general aviation especially, I wouldn't say it has changed for the better.

All that withstanding, I still enjoy flying the machine and the view is still great.

[Wm.Ince]

Most of my flight time (300hrs) is in the C172, and I've flown the Remos GX, Allegro, Piper Sportcruiser. The Sportstar felt not much different than the piper archer and Cessna 172s that I've flown. I also liked the visibility with the canopy and the basic instrumentation.

Right on!