12 | February-March 2017 | Powered Sport Flying Light Sport Aircraft Contrary to some naysayers, lsa has been a global success. Today, lsa and lsa-like aircraft represent well over 60,000 units worldwide with annual sales around 3,000 new units. That last figure is about triple the number of new Type Certified aircraft delivered annually, according to recent reports. “As for the current [BasicMed] proposal, it is not the open medical idea that the lsa pilots enjoy,” observed Eric Tucker, longtime industry expert and technical representative for Rotax in the Americas. “The ‘hoops’ put in by the faa make [achieving BasicMed] anything but simple,” he added. “There are still checks, there are still evaluations that make this far more complex than the lsa medical we currently have.” Eric summarized noting that, given those fresh ‘hoops,’ lsa will not lose its appeal due to the medical changes for pilots. “After reviewing the new requirements, the so-called relaxing of the medical for pilots, I am rather surprised at the pundits’ responses,” elaborated Eric. “This is not at all the same as the lsa rule. Indeed this is in some ways worse than what they have at the moment, in my opinion. You now have people who have to go to a doctor who will be unsure of what is really required and perhaps reluctant to sign off on a certificate that they know so little about.” Eric suggested asking yourself these questions: “Will doctors unfamiliar with aviation be willing to sign off for aviation medicals? Will they be willing to take on the responsibility for this in light of the legal response, if it should occur (as it no doubt will) that a pilot has a medical issue while flying after seeing a regular doctor? I think that the positive thoughts expressed today by some might change when we recheck this in a few years. Time will tell.” “The lsa rule is far better,” Eric concluded. “People should be made aware of this.” •
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