Flight Design CTLS Lentokone rekisteriin / NPPL JA PPL

[Ray]

Pystymme nyt tarjoamaan Flight Design CTLS konetta EASA Permit to fly:llä mikä tarkoittaa, että voidaan siirtymäkauden aikana ja uusia ELA sääntöjä odotellessa lentää konetta 600 kg:n lentoonlähtömassalla. Tämä vaatii lentäjiltä PPL -lupakirjaa, mutta tällä pystyy myös PPL pilotit keräämään moottoritiimaa huomattavasti halvemmalla tuntihinnalla kun perinteisellä moottorikoneella.


Flight Design has finished final stage of getting the Flight Conditions for the CTLS Permit to Fly approved by EASA. Once these are approved it will be possible to operate the CTLS in EASA countries with a so-called Permit to Fly.

1.   PERMIT-TO-FLY

EASA legislation allows to operate aircrafts under certain circumstances with a Permit to Fly (PtF) instead of on the basis of a Type Certificate. In this case the aircraft is operated within so-called Flight Conditions (FC). Since March 2007 responsibility to approve Flight Conditions for a Permit to Fly has been shifted from National Authorities towards EASA.

A standard case where a PtF is used is, when an aircraft is not in compliance with the TC basis (example: Ferry flight for maintenance, or ferry flights from AIRBUS Toulouse to Hamburg, test flights exceeding the limitations within the TC, ...). In total there are 15 cases defined that allow the issuing of a FC for a PtF. Basis for the CTLS PtF is reason 15: ,,For non-commercial flying activity on individual non-complex aircraft or types for which the Agency agrees that a certificate of airworthiness or restricted certificate of airworthiness is not appropriate". With a CTLS built to FAA accepted ASTM LSA standards the Agency agreed explicitly that a TC or RTC is at this point in time not appropriate.

2.   PROCESS TO ACHIEVE A PTF

Basis to get the CTLS registered under a PtF is as follows:

2.1.    Flight Conditions (FC)

FC are approved by EASA for the CTLS. In the case of an aircraft produced under serial conditions by one manufacturer the procedure is that the manufacturer agrees upon the FC´s with the Agency.
To do this the first time a more detailed process is required. Right now Flight Design is close to have this finished. Once the basic FC are agreed, any subsequent aircraft can apply for approval of FC without detailed investigation, as long as the design is not altered. Upon altering of the design the FC have to be re-approved.

2.2.   Application FC

For each individual aircraft to be operated under PtF an application has to be filed at EASA requesting approval of FC. The process always runs for one explicit S/N. For subsequent aircraft the already agreed FC get attached, and the approval is a formalism.
Following Commission Regulation (EC) No. 593/2007 of 31 May 2007 on the fees and charges levied by the European Aviation Safety Agency for this step a flat fee of 675,00 EURO, equaling 3 working hours, applies. As of 01.06.2008 for these fees and charges an indexation has been defined, compensating the inflation rate on a more flexible basis than changing the regulation. As of now this is 2.4% indexation, resulting in 691,20 EURO.

Application for the approval of FC will be filed by Flight Design for ordered PtF aircraft.

2.3.   Application PtF / Registration

Registration and final issuing of the PtF is done by the National Authority of the country where the aircraft shall be registered to.
This is done using the EASA Form 21. This is done by the owner of the aircraft, in our case assisted by the distributor. Flight Design will provide a pre-filled form where the individual data can be filled in.

2.4.   Can the National Authority say "no"?

Right now no CTLS is really flying on a PtF basis. Therefore we have to rely right now on the information obtained through EASA, and fixed in Part 21. These are as follows:
-   The FC will be issued by EASA.
-   By approving the FC, EASA confirms that the aircraft is fit for safe operation and clears the aircraft for operation within all EASA member states.
-   When an EASA approved FC exists, the National Authority must register the aircraft and grant the PtF, as the Agency has approved the aircraft. What they can insist upon is an inspection of the aircraft, to confirm that it is in line with the definitions of the approved FC.
-   Theoretically it is possible that the National Authority is of the opinion that the FC´s are not adequate. In this case the only legal way for them is that they complain at EASA. Then EASA has to confirm position. This is the reason why the first time EASA makes a more thorough check of documentation and production processes, that their position is reliable.

3.   LIMITATIONS

The FC´s imply operational limitations to the aircraft that have to be considered.

3.1.   General

The main items are:

1.   Non-commercial operation
2.   Licensing requirement
3.   Maintenance requirement

The non-commercial limitation is implied by the reasoning for the issuance of the FC to PtF.

The licensing requirement is higher than for the Ultralight, as the MTOM of the aircraft does no more meet Annex II Ultralight limits. In accordance with the 600 kg MTOM at minimum a National PPL is required.
Maintenance of any PtF aircraft must be done on a certain basis of Part M practice. Here we worked efficiently to come to an acceptable solution accepting maintenance personnel and inspectors approved for Touring Motor glider maintenance. It is not possible that like for Ultralights everyone does his maintenance completely on his own.

3.2.   CTLS Specific

For the CTLS this means:
-   The aircraft has the flight limitations like the LSA aircraft outside USA (-12° flaps and no 120 kts Vh limit).
-   A commercial charter operation is not possible.
-   Operation in flying clubs on non commercial basis is well possible.
-   Flight training in clubs is well possible, only flight training solo flights are not allowed.
-   Flight under VFR day in VMC conditions
-   Flights over densely populated areas at minimum altitude 2000 ft
-   Operational Airframe Emergency Parachute required

4.   APPROVAL DURATIONS

It is defined by EASA that FC´s to PtF for LSA aircraft will be valid 2 years from now. They will not be renewed when ELA is in place at this point in time. This directly implies for these aircraft that they will be transferred under the rules of ELA recreational flying by then. Given the case that ELA will not happen, formulation is selected in a way that renewal will be possible.

Ray

[P.Lehtinen]

Pieni kysymys:
Minkälaiseen rekisteriin LSA-koneen saa suomessa? Tyhmä kysymys mutta kun ei älyä

[Ray]

Pieni kysymys:
Minkälaiseen rekisteriin LSA-koneen saa suomessa? Tyhmä kysymys mutta kun ei älyä

menee ihan moottorikone rekkariin, eli tunnus vois olla esim joku OH-CTS 

[Markku Hiedanpää]

EASA:n politiikkaa LSA lentokoneille:


EASA policy Issuing PTF for LSA

The ASTM Standard for light sport aircraft is accepted as a "certification" basis for issuing a permit to fly until such regulations are in place in Europe.

The permit to fly will have a limited validity until the ELA-rules are in place in Europe. There is no automatic transfer of these PtF into another kind of EASA approval. It has to be replaced by an EASA approval following the principles that will be in place in future (Part 21, fees and charges, etc) or aircraft will be on the ground.

Future regulation will define some kind of TC and a TC-Holder obligations according to Part 21. Therefore this way is not applicable to individual owners.

Showing of compliance (load analysis, static test, flight test etc.) has to be done and the EASA/NAA needs to be satisfied that the aircraft is able to perform safe flights when operated according to the approved flight conditions.

The approval can only be granted for the MTOM for that the showing of compliance with the requirements is valid. For the first application a more detailed review of the documentation for ASTM "Certification" will be done and flight conditions will be developed.

For the following applications these process is simplified and the agreed flight conditions can be approved when manufacturing documentation and inspection reports are submitted.

With the approved flight conditions the aircraft registration of the aircraft is possible in all EU member states.

The pilot licence needed would be the national licence for a powered aeroplane in that weight category.

A maintenance regime has to be defined following basic principles of ,,new" Part-M performed by apropriate staff.

Operational limitations will prohibit at least IFR, Night VFR, Aerobatics, Solo-Training. Modifications require a new approval of flight conditions.