Ultralight aviation
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During the late 1970s and early 1980s, many people sought to be able to fly affordably. As a result, many aviation authorities set up definitions of lightweight, slow-flying aeroplanes that could be subject to minimum regulation. The resulting aeroplanes are commonly called "ultralight" or "microlight", although the weight and speed limits are rarely the same between any two countries.
There is also an allowance of another 10% on Maximum Take Off Weight for seaplanes and amphibians, and some countries (such as Germany and France) also allow another 5% for installation of a ballistic parachute.
The safety regulations used to approve microlights vary between countries, the most strict being the United Kingdom, Italy and Germany, while they are almost non-existent in France and the United States. The disparity between regulations is a major barrier to international trade and overflight, as is the fact that these regulations are invariably sub-ICAO, which means that they are not internationally recognised.
Photo Credit Andre Zeman
In most affluent countries, microlights or ultralights now account for about 20% of the civil aircraft fleet.
Ultralight aircraft are generally called microlight aircraft in the UK and New Zealand, and ULMs in France and Italy. Some countries differentiate between weight shift and 3-axis aircraft, calling the former microlight and the latter ultralight.
The U.S. light-sport aircraft is similar to the UK and NZ Microlight in definition and licensing requirement, the U.S. 'Ultralight' being in a class of its own.
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[edit] Definitions
[edit] United States
The USA FAA's definition of an ultralight is significantly different from that in most other countries and can lead to some confusion when discussing the topic. The governing regulation in the United States is FAR 103, which specifies an "ultralight" as a single seat vehicle of less than 5 US gallons (19 L) fuel capacity, empty weight of less than 254 pounds (115 kg), a top speed of 55 knots (102 km/h), a maximum stall speed not exceeding 24 knots (45 km/h), and are only allowed to fly during daylight hours and over unpopulated areas. Weight allowances can be made for two-seat trainers, amphibious landing gear, and ballistic parachute systems.
In 2004 the FAA introduced the "Light-Sport Aircraft" category, which closely resembles other countries' Ultralight categories.
In the United States no license or training is required by law for ultralights, but training is highly advisable. For light-sport aircraft a sport pilot certificate is required, which is similar in requirements to other countries' Ultralight license.
Ultralight aviation is represented by the United States Ultralight Association (USUA), which represents the US portion of the sport to the world through its affiliation with the FAI.
[edit] Canada
[edit] Europe
The definition of a microlight according to the Joint Aviation Authorities document JAR-1 is an aeroplane having no more than two seats, maximum stall speed (VS0) of 35 knots (65 km/h) CAS, and a maximum take-off mass of no more than:
- 300 kg for a landplane, single seater; or
- 450 kg for a landplane, two-seater; or
- 330 kg for an amphibian or floatplane, single seater; or
- 495 kg for an amphibian or floatplane, two-seater, provided that a microlight capable of operating as both a floatplane and a landplane falls below both MTOM limits, as appropriate.
Note: Foot-launched aircraft are excluded from this definition.
[edit] Australia
In Australia a "Sport/Recreational aircraft" must have:
- a maximum all-up weight (MAUW) of 544 kg or less;
- a stalling speed under 45 knots in landing configuration and
- a maximum of two seats.
[edit] New Zealand
In New Zealand Microlight aircraft are separated into two classes, basically single and two seat aircraft. All Microlights are required to have a proscribed endurance testing period when they are first flown, and all microlights must have a minimum set of instrumentation to show airspeed (except powered parachutes), altitude and magnetic heading.
[edit] NZ Class 1
Single seat aircraft with a design gross weight of 544 kg (landplanes) or 579 kg (seaplanes or amphibians), or less, and a stall speed in the landing configuration of 45 knots or less. Requires aircraft registration, and annual condition inspections, but does not require a permit to fly.
[edit] NZ Class 2
Two seat aircraft with a design gross weight of 544 kg (landplanes) or 614 kg (seaplanes or amphibians), or less, and a stall speed of 45 knots or less in the landing configuration. Must meet minimum type acceptance standards which may be foreign standards which have been deemed acceptable, or via a temporary permit to fly and flight testing regime. Requires aircraft registration, annual condition inspections, and a current permit to fly.
[edit] Types of Aircraft
While ultralight-type planes date back to the early 1900s (such as the Santos-Dumont Demoiselle), there have been three generations of modern, fixed-wing ultralight aircraft designs, which are generally classed by the type of structure.
The first generation of modern ultralights were actually hang gliders with small engines added to them, for self-launching. The wings on these were braced by wires, and steered by shifting the pilot's weight under the wing.
The second generation ultralights began to arrive in the mid-1970s. These were designed as powered aircraft, but still used wire bracing and usually single-surface wings. Most of these have "2-Axis" control systems, operated by stick or yoke, which control the elevators (pitch) and the rudder (yaw) -- there are no ailerons, so may be no direct control of banking (roll). A few 2-Axis designs use spoilers on the top of the wings, and pedals for rudder control. Examples of 2-Axis ultralights are the "Pterodactyl" and the "Quicksilver MX" (as seen in the photograph to the right).
The third generation ultralights, arriving in the early 1980s, have strut-braced wings and airframe structure. Nearly all use 3-Axis control systems, as used on standard airplanes, and these are the most popular. Third generation designs include the "T-Bird," "Kolb" and "Challenger" families.
There are several types of aircraft which qualify as ultralights, but which don't have fixed-wing designs. These include:
- Weight Shift - while the first generation ultralights were also controlled by weight shift, most of the current weight shift ultralights use a hang glider-style wing, below which is suspended a three wheeled pod which carries the engine and aviators. These aircraft are controlled by pushing against a horizontal bar in roughly the same way as a hang glider pilot flies. Trikes generally have impressive climb rates and are ideal for rough field operation, but are slower than other types of fixed-wing ultralights.
- Powered parachutes - cart mounted engines or motor scooters with parafoil wing, similar to parachutes used in skydiving.
- Powered paragliding - backpack engines with parafoil wing, which are foot-launched.
- Gyroplane - rotary wing with cart mounted engine (see autogyro), a gyrocopter is different from a helicopter in that the rotating wing is not powered, the engine provides forward thrust and the airflow through the rotary blades causes them to autorotate or "spin up" to create lift. Most of these use a design based on the Bensen Gyrocopter.
- Helicopter - there are a number of single-seat and two-place helicopters which fall under the microlight categories in countries such as New Zealand. However, few helicopter designs fall within the USA's more restrictive ultralight category. One of these is "Mosquito."
- Hot Air Balloon - there are numerous ultralight hot air balloons in the US, and several more have been built and flown in France and Australia in recent years. Some ultralight hot air balloons are hopper balloons, while others are regular hot air balloons that carry passengers in a basket.
[edit] Safety
Ultralights used to have a poor safety reputation. Most of the early designs were fragile or unstable, and this resulted in a number of accidents. However, the reputation came largely from rumor and distrust of the new type of aircraft.
As designs matured, pilot error was shown to be the cause of the vast majority of incidents involving ultralights. As a result, most countries now require an Ultralight Pilot's license/certificate, often regulated by one or more officially-delegated pilots' organizations. The United States does not have any such requirement, but pilots advise training for anyone interested in flying ultralights. For this purpose, the FAA permits instruction to be given in two-place versions of ultralights.
The build quality and airworthiness of Ultralight aircraft (and homebuilt light-sport aircraft in the USA) now equals that of Certified light aircraft. Some types satisfy both sets of requirements and are available for registration to either Ultralight or Certified status. When registered as an Ultralight (or Experimental), the pilot is permitted to do more of the simple maintenance tasks, resulting in a lower cost of operation, although this comes at the cost of restrictions such as avoiding densely populated urban areas, bad weather, or night. Many older pilots are willing to trade these operational restrictions for a lower drain on their retirement incomes, and as a result many Ultralights are now flown by experienced General Aviation (GA) pilots or ex-commercial pilots. One other reason for this increase in acceptance is that any pilot is "only one Medical away from being an Ultralight pilot" -- a reference to the requirement that most other pilots must pass periodic physical examinations, but not to fly Ultralights. These effects mean that the experience level of the average Ultralight pilot has risen and now probably equals, and may even exceed, that of the average GA pilot.
[edit] The Future
Ultralight/microlight aircraft were once regarded as "flying clotheslines", since early aircraft were typically completely open, wire, tube and rag aircraft – naturally these aircraft were seldom used for anything more than local area flying.
However, ultralights are rapidly transforming into high performance aircraft, capable of very respectable speed and range. In recent years there has been a dramatic rise in the number of General Aviation pilots flying high performance ultralights due to the cost benefits.
These aircraft are now often referred to as recreational aircraft.
A rapidly growing area of the class is scale-replica "warbirds", such as the offerings from Titan Aircraft and Loehle Aircraft.
[edit] External links
- Ultralight Regulations in Various Countries
- Database of Ultralight aircraft
- Type Acceptance information for New Zealand Microlights
[edit] Ultralight/microlight organizations
- Ultralights Database
- Aero Sports Connection
- American Aerotrekking Society
- Australian Ultralight Federation
- British Microlight Aircraft Association
- Danish Ultralight Flying Association
- Experimental Aviation Association
- Recreational Aircraft Association of Canada
- Recreational Aircraft Association of New Zealand
- Ultralight Pilots Association of Canada
- United States' Ultralight Association
- Vintage Ultralight Association- worldwide
