OSHKOSH, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) — The U.S. Secretary of Transportation made an announcement Tuesday at EAA AirVenture that will change the light-sport aircraft market.
Modifications to safety and aircraft categories are also coming.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, a former U.S. representative for Wisconsin’s seventh congressional district, made a stop in Oshkosh to reveal a new FAA rule called MOSAIC, or Modernization of Special Airworthiness Certification. It focuses on restructuring the requirements for an aircraft to be placed in the light-sport category.
“We just finalized a major reform that is going to make recreational flying safer, more accessible and far less red tape to tie us up in,” Duffy said.
I can’t think of a better place than at the largest general aviation airshow in the U.S. to announce that we’re unleashing American ingenuity. This new rule will promote better designs, safer materials, and upgraded technology in the recreational aviation sector.
Transportation officials said the switch will “remove outdated regulations that have impeded innovation and safety in the growing recreational Light Sport aviation sector.”
The announcement is making waves in the aircraft community. Set to take effect next year, changes include lifting the weight limit for light-sport aircrafts.
That means light-sport pilots like Robert Gayner from Florida will have fewer restrictions on their aircrafts.
“I think that this is absolutely amazing. My light-sport aircraft with two people in it tends to max out or just get close to that max limit. So when I think about buying new technology that’s safer for the plane, it gets difficult to do that because then I have to lose a passenger,” Gayner said.
Robert’s son Dylan, a student pilot, helped his father build the aircraft. He said the change is an advantage for those looking to begin flying.
“When they remove that 1320 weight limit, it opens things up for those 172s, those CESNAS you see out on the field, so you can go get a sports pilot license without having to find a super niche, small aircraft,” Dylan said.
Andrea Venturini with Porto Aviation Group said it’s a gamechanger for their aircrafts — which previously had to be categorized as experimental.
“In Europe, we belong to the light sport category, but unfortunately until now, until MOSAIC was coming in place, we couldn’t belong to light-sport in the USA, and the reason is because we are complex,” said Venturini.
That complexity includes retractable landing gear and a ballistic parachute.
Robert Barnes, importer of Risen Aircraft, is excited what this means for the U.S. aircraft market.
“The U.S. manufacturers have been hamstrung. Being able to develop cutting edge designs like this, the U.S. manufacturers, now it frees them up, so it will allow the U.S. manufacturers to be on a more level playing field with us in Europe. The level of competition is going to go up,” Barnes said.
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