Guy Leitch
How the FAA is Fixing Recreational Flying
We often forget that South Africa still has some world class institutions that make our country a much better place than that supposed paragon of excellence – the USA. The American banking system is archaic compared to South Africa and our restaurants and food are better and cheaper.
One of the big surprises is that South Africa’s regulation of non-type certified aircraft (NTCA) is far better than the Americans. (Yes, Poppy, for once the CAA is better than the FAA).
The FAA has long been held to be the leader in aviation regulation. Yet they created a boondoggle when they tried to regulate homebuilt aircraft.
The roots of South Africa’s effective regulation can be traced back to the LS-1 document which laid the groundwork for an enlightened approach to ‘homebuilt’ aircraft regulation. Over time the South African regulations have been further refined and in 2007 the then Director of Civil Aviation Colin Jordaan launched the Recreational Aviation Administration of SA (RAASA) to manage ‘non-type certified aircraft’. The idea was to make recreational aviation self-governing and thus to allow the CAA to wash its hands of responsibility for those crazy enough to want to build and fly their own planes. By world standards, especially American, this was progressive.
Notably , unlike American and European regulators, South African Light Sport Aircraft (LSA) were allowed to have retractable undercarriage and a constant speed prop. And crucially, there was no weight limit, unlike the Europe and American 600 kg max all up weight limit. The weight limit was a bad idea as aircraft were being built to an arbitrary weight rather than to an appropriate strength.
For the regulators, the big divide is between Type Certified (TCA) and Non-Type Certified Aircraft (NTCA). Type certified have passed the rigorous and expensive process of being approved (certified) by the regulator – usually the FAA or EASA. NTCA is essentially anything else which flies. This ranges from thundering supersonic jet fighters to balloons and drones. Because they have not had to be approved and maintenance is likewise not as tightly regulated, they are supposed to be significantly more affordable than TCA. However, as the sophistication of NTCAs has increased, this is often no longer the case.
The question of what constitutes a homebuilt aircraft has vexed the regulators. The USA came up with the 51% rule – which meant that more than half the plane had to have been built by the owner/pilot. Exactly how to define what constitutes more than half a plane is hard to define (weight or part count?) and resulted in factories having build-assist programmes to nominally have the new owner build half.
Again the South African CAA led the way with a more practical approach to factory-built NTCAs. They recognised that an NTCA built by an ‘approved builder’ could be expected to have a better build quality than a genuine homebuilt. There was also an urgent need to update the Light Sport Aircraft (LSA) rules which had turned out to be a little too fragile for flight training and too limited for family transportation.
In the USA all NTCAs must display a large warning sign stating that the aircraft was ‘Experimental’. In other words, pilot and passengers beware, you are flying at your own risk.
In 2004 the FAA had launched the Sport Pilot Licence with limited success. It was used mostly by retiring pilots, and not younger ones entering the industry. The FAA says there are around 7,000 Sport Pilots, compared with 164,000 Private Pilots.
Finally recognising that their LSA and Sport Pilot regulations did not work very well, the FAA has now issued a set of proposals called the Modernization of Special Airworthiness Certification (MOSAIC) for NTCAs. Because the FAA sets the standards for so many regulators around the world, this is of great importance to us in South Africa.
MOSAIC aims to modernise and expand LSA capabilities to improve: safety, accessibility and innovation in aviation by proposing eight key changes:
1. MOSAIC eliminates the 600kg weight limit. Instead, maximum weight will be dictated by stall speed. Planes that stall below 54 knots can weigh around 3,000 lbs. This allows bigger margins for safety and utility.
2. Mosaic increases the maximum LSA stall speed from 45 to 54 knots. This enables planes like C172s to qualify as LSAs.
3. Remove the 120 kt max speed limit, potentially permitting LSAs to reach 250 knots.
4. Allow variable pitch props, retractable gear, and even multiple engines.
5. Expand LSA categories to include helicopters, gyrocopters, and electric VTOL aircraft. This will spur innovation in VTOL, autonomy and advanced technology.
6. Allow IFR and night flying.
7. Sport pilots will be able fly up to 4-seat LSAs, but only with 1 passenger.
8. Enable commercial aerial work like photography.
This expanded definition adds over 50,000 legacy planes, including the venerable Cessna 172 and Cherokees. While a Sport Pilot can still carry just a single passenger, they can fly a faster plane and use the back seats for luggage. That should make restoring old planes and adding new avionics a good investment.
At this stage the MOSAIC proposals are just proposals for public comments. The final rules are expected in 1 to 2 years.
MOSAIC is the product of years of effort by industry groups like the EAA, AOPA, and General Aviation Manufacturers Association (GAMA) and the FAA. It is all about revitalising the LSA industry into using performance-based standards so the basic Sport Pilot Certificate requirements will remain unchanged. Sport Pilots will still fly without a medical certificate, using their driver’s license.
One of the big changes will be the impact on electric aircraft. An embarrassing omission in the original LSA rules was electric motors, which were never considered and so were not allowed. This set back electric aviation by probably a decade. Electric motors will be allowed, as will FADEC and fly-by-wire controls. This flexibility should finally allow for real engine innovation, which has lagged avionics badly over the past two decades. Light planes should become easier to start, quieter, and more reliable.
With no limits on aircraft power sources, eVTOLs and electric planes can more easily certify as LSA. The increased 3,000 lb weight enables larger battery packs for extended electric flight. Higher permitted speeds let electric LSAs achieve practical cruise speeds.
MOSAIC will allow LSAs to be used for commercial operations like aerial photography, surveys, agriculture, pipeline patrol, and more. This offers new business opportunities. Additional crew training may be required, but operating costs should be lower than full FAA certification.
FINAL THOUGHTS
There is naturally concern that the FAA may be going too far in devolving the risks of light sport aircraft to the owner/pilot.
Our columnist Peter Garrison says, “My guess is that the FAA is happy to wash its hands of as many airplanes and pilots as possible. MOSAIC opens the door to entrepreneurs and makes it cheaper to get a pilot’s license. I agree that a 250-knot turbine flown by a sport pilot sounds pretty extreme, but what does it really mean? The pilot hasn’t had to get a medical and hasn’t had to learn a lot of stuff that’s required for the Private (and is probably soon forgotten anyway), but may be perfectly capable. And if you don’t have good judgment, a PPL isn’t going to give it to you.
“It was definitely a bad idea to have a weight limit rather than a wing loading limit, and the omission of electric motors was unfortunate. The MOSAIC rules seem to reflect a more realistic appreciation of how airplanes behave, and to be free of a lot of old prejudices.
“I think it’s rather admirable that the FAA’s movement is toward liberalization rather than restriction. But I do feel a little humiliated that my plane [Melmoth 2] is going to be nothing but a homemade Light Sport.”
Sling Aircraft are making steady inroads into the huge American market. The MOSAIC proposals should make it far easier for them to sell their excellent Sling 4TSI and High Wing into that huge market. Sling Chairman James Pitman says, “the new proposals are just what we need as it will create a proper space for our four-seater planes and will hopefully remove the clumsy 51% rule. Also the market should be greatly expanded by allowing Sport Pilots to fly our four seaters.”
The proposed MOSAIC rule is an exciting new chapter for general aviation. By unleashing innovation through modern, performance-based standards, MOSAIC will breathe new life into recreational flying and pilot training. We can expect to see LSAs get safer, faster, and more capable. New designs will make flying more accessible and affordable. It’s all good news.