EAB that qualify as light sport

[Frank Giger]

LOL, Mr. Covey beat me to the link! Thank you, sir!

Of course none of these lists are exhaustive, and when considering purchasing an Experimental a look at the POH is in order, even on a model that is usually LSA. The reason is that the builder sets the max gross weight, and if he puts down that 1330 pounds is the max gross the plane isn't LSA eligible regardless of anything else, even if it is clearly impossible to reach that weight in the aircraft without resorting to bags of lead shot in the fuselage and wings.

The reverse is also true, in that a builder can set the gross weight limit lower than the original plans call for or what the aircraft is capable of handling. One has to be reasonable about it, of course, because the W&B table is right there and one doesn't want to have a useable load of 15 pounds when the aircraft is dry. Once the max weight is set for a plane it's set, and changing it is usually a really long a sordid affair with the FAA. It's all fun and games until the NTSB shows up.

FlightDesign actually did this with their CTLS. Unless, of course, we want to believe that they designed the aircraft to a place where the max gross weight was a perfect 1320. And, yes, if the pilot and passenger each weigh 200 pounds full fuel tanks take it over max gross....but I know a fellow who says the plane does just fine taking off that way and climbs normally, and in two hours of flight it's back below 1320 pounds. Of course they might have designed it that way, as a solo pilot must weigh at least 100 pounds to keep W&B in the envelope.

[rwanttaja]

Older as in aircraft that were designed in the 60s, 70s, and 80s. Aircraft that were designed and plans built...

It's a fairly safe bet that almost any homebuilt that is strut-braced or wire-braced, wood or steel-tube, using either an A65 or a VW engine, is Sport-Pilot-Eligible. You will find exceptions, in that a few designs were optimized for speed.

Note that there's no official list...it's up to you to pick a design that meets the Sport Pilot requirements. I figure these qualify with no question:

Bowers Fly Baby
Pietenpol Air Camper
Pober Pixie
Corbin Baby Ace
Evans Volksplane
Smith Miniplane
Baby Great Lakes
Flaglor Scooter
Aerosport Scamp
Der Kricket
Issacs Fury
Sorrel SNS-2 Guppy
Woody Pusher
EAA Biplane
Skyote
Stolp V-Star
Taylor Monoplane

Good references for these older designs are Budd Davisson's The World of Sport Aviation, and Peter M, Bowers' Guide to Homebuilts, Ninth Edition. Both are long out of print, but can be often found in used book stores.

There are other designs that *could* qualify, depending on your actions when building. For instance, some have gross weights over the 1320-pound limit. If you build the aircraft, you can list a lower gross weight. I left a number of older designs off the above list as their speeds "as advertised" approached or exceeded the Light Sport limit. In reality, one could argue that the actual attainable speeds are less and the aircraft therefore qualifies.

Here's a summary of what qualifications are necessary:

Ron Wanttaja

[Frank Giger]

Great graphic!

[wallda]

Just ordered both books!

[aeromike49]

It's a fairly safe bet that almost any homebuilt that is strut-braced or wire-braced, wood or steel-tube, using either an A65 or a VW engine, is Sport-Pilot-Eligible. You will find exceptions, in that a few designs were optimized for speed.

Note that there's no official list...it's up to you to pick a design that meets the Sport Pilot requirements. I figure these qualify with no question:

Bowers Fly Baby
Pietenpol Air Camper
Pober Pixie
Corbin Baby Ace
Evans Volksplane
Smith Miniplane
Baby Great Lakes
Flaglor Scooter
Aerosport Scamp
Der Kricket
Issacs Fury
Sorrel SNS-2 Guppy
Woody Pusher
EAA Biplane
Skyote
Stolp V-Star
Taylor Monoplane

Good references for these older designs are Budd Davisson's The World of Sport Aviation, and Peter M, Bowers' Guide to Homebuilts, Ninth Edition. Both are long out of print, but can be often found in used book stores.

There are other designs that *could* qualify, depending on your actions when building. For instance, some have gross weights over the 1320-pound limit. If you build the aircraft, you can list a lower gross weight. I left a number of older designs off the above list as their speeds "as advertised" approached or exceeded the Light Sport limit. In reality, one could argue that the actual attainable speeds are less and the aircraft therefore qualifies.

Here's a summary of what qualifications are necessary:

Ron Wanttaja

I know that at least one of the Stitts aircraft - the Flut R Bug could be sport pilot legal - and I am sure that there were more models than just the SA6B

[WWhunter]

I don't think anyone has yet mentioned it, but the first thing you should do is define your mission. Do you want a sleek tarmac needing speedster, or do you want a STOL type backcountry flyer? Open cockpit or closed? Tandem or side by side seating? One or two seats? So many variables and just as many options.
Of course with the speed limit of LSA you can come awfully close to having both with some of these planes.
If you can define your mission I am sure there will be a bunch of replies pointing you in the right direction. Good luck in your search!!