www.PSFmagazine.com | October-November 2016 | 27 26 | October-November 2016 | Powered Sport Flying Gyroplane News This summer Autogyro made history by becoming the first gyroplane to receive Primary Category certification. A Primary Category, Special Airworthiness, Certificate is issued to operate aircraft that have been type certificated in this unique category. Primary Category became effective in December 1992 and since then only two other models of aircraft have been certified under the rule. Quicksilver certified their GT500 and rans went through the process for the S-7 Courier. This makes Autogyro’s achievement not only historic, but rare within all aircraft manufacturers. The faa considers aircraft in the Primary Category which have a simple design and intended exclusively for pleasure and personal use. Although these aircraft may be available for rental and flight instruction under certain conditions, the carrying of persons or property for hire is prohibited. In that way, a Primary Category certificate is similar to a Special Light Sport Aircraft (slsa) certificate. The major differences from slsa and Primary Category are that while slsa are produced under consensus standards and without a production certificate, aircraft certificated in the primary category must first have designs approved by the faa and then they must be manufactured under a production certificate, which is also granted by the faa in a separate process. This includes aircraft assembled from a kit under the production certificate holder’s supervision and quality control system. Kit-built aircraft built without the production certificate holder’s supervision are only eligible for certification in the Experimental Category. “It is a truly historic moment,” said Autogyro’s Chief Certification Officer Gerry Speich. The faa, the US Federal Aviation Administration, started its Calidus Primary Category flight testing in Maryland. It was the first formal flight testing by the faa of a modern-generation gyroplane. Having completed the intense tests after some days of flying, the US authorities have given the approval for the release of the Type Certificate for Autogyro’s Calidus. The aircraft has been found to have acceptable flight handling characteristics for flight in day and night vfr conditions. However, the official Type Certificate –which is comparable to the British Section T– will still take some time. This fall, the faa was scheduled to visit the Autogyro factory in Hildesheim to view the actual production facility. Primary Category Approval For Calidus In USA
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