Sport Pilot Talk

I posted this over in the training forum and then thought it might be better asked here. I'm new here so please forgive the redundant posts.

I got my PPL in college and haven’t logged flight time since1989. Considering getting back into it but not sure I want to go through the bureaucracy of the FAA’s medical certificate given past complex health history, I’m safe to fly but as I understand it if you apply for a medical and get denied you are barred forever for asking, Sport or otherwise. Can’t do Basic Med, my last FAA physical was in the 1980s.

Some questions
1. As I understand it I don’t need to get a Sport Pilot Certificate as my PPL trumps that and without a medical all I need is a drivers license and operate only LSA within the LSA restrictions. Is this correct? In effect I’m downgrading in a sense.
2. I guess the term “biennial flight review” doesn’t technically apply as that is for the type rating and aircraft for which you are certified, i.e., Airplane -Single Engine Land in my case which as an LSA guy I wouldn’t be doing. So, if I have it right the correct term is really an “endorsement” for LSA? I wouldn’t be subject to an FAA written, oral exam or check ride for Sport Pilot. Am I on track here?
3. From a practicality standpoint I would obviously need considerable self-study and flight instruction hours in LSA to come up to speed but the end result is an endorsement and for all practical purposes fulfilling the same requirements of a BFR? A major effort equating to almost starting over but without the FAA Sport Pilot Certificate?


Thx

Welcome to Sport Pilot Talk!

Your questions:

1. You are correct. If your private pilot certificate is valid (not revoked), you can fly light sport airplanes exercising the privileges of a sport pilot using a valid driver's license in lieu of a medical certificate.

2. You must still undergo a flight review every two years with a CFI and have the CFI enter the satisfactory completion of the flight review in your logbook. The flight review is no longer called a "biennial" flight review, even though that's what it is.

3. You should spend several hours with a CFI getting up to speed on regulatory changes since you stopped flying, refreshing your flying skills in an LSA, and reviewing other subjects like weather, radio communications, airspace, flight planning, VFR rules, etc. That should satisfy the flight review requirement; just be sure to have the CFI enter it in your logbook.

Welcome back.

You only need to post once.

I was shocked to find students are still using the E-6B computer, plotters and paper maps to prep for checkrides in the digital age of iPads and GPS. I thought these things would have been long since relegated to aviation museums. I guess some things still apply.

FlyAgain wrote:I was shocked to find students are still using the E-6B computer, plotters and paper maps to prep for checkrides in the digital age of iPads and GPS. I thought these things would have been long since relegated to aviation museums. I guess some things still apply.

Yeah, they go thru the motions and then never use that stuff again .. which makes the whole excersize somewhat pointless.
Now, understanding theory is crucial ( heading vs course etc ) so that will never go away but the legacy tools being used during training like E-6B are definitely passé and since nobody bothers to use them afterwards ...

In other words, it is somewhat akin to teaching math - that skill will never be obsolete ...but insisting on teaching how to practice it with an abacus (in case our computers magically disappear ) is a bit silly.

FlyAgain wrote:I was shocked to find students are still using the E-6B computer, plotters and paper maps to prep for checkrides in the digital age of iPads and GPS. I thought these things would have been long since relegated to aviation museums. I guess some things still apply.

The only aviation relic I used was a sectional. My DPE opened one up and asked me questions off it for about 5 minutes during the oral. I never used an E-6B or a plotter during my oral or my checkride. I dont own either one of those tools. I demonstrated W&B off my iPad with a spreadsheet I designed for my aircraft. I was even asked to use my Garmin GPS in my plane for navigation to demonstrate that I knew how to operate it.

ShawnM wrote:

FlyAgain wrote:I was shocked to find students are still using the E-6B computer, plotters and paper maps to prep for checkrides in the digital age of iPads and GPS. I thought these things would have been long since relegated to aviation museums. I guess some things still apply.

The only aviation relic I used was a sectional. My DPE opened one up and asked me questions off it for about 5 minutes during the oral. I never used an E-6B or a plotter during my oral or my checkride. I dont own either one of those tools. I demonstrated W&B off my iPad with a spreadsheet I designed for my aircraft. I was even asked to use my Garmin GPS in my plane for navigation to demonstrate that I knew how to operate it.

Yeah, same here - my DPE ( a retired airline pilot) told me to forget the calculator and anything paper related and just fly the crosscountry the way I would normally fly ... and same as you , during the oral portion he did test me on various scenario-driven airspace related questions using actual sectionals ...

I used a new DPE for my most recent applicant. I ask what he wanted to see Foreflight vs sectional and E6B. He said he didn't care, and they could use monkey bones if they wanted, as long as they knew where the numbers come from.

3Dreaming wrote:I used a new DPE for my most recent applicant. I ask what he wanted to see Foreflight vs sectional and E6B. He said he didn't care, and they could use monkey bones if they wanted, as long as they knew where the numbers come from.

Monkey bones? I almost brought my monkey bones but opted for my iPad instead. Less clutter in the cockpit.

That's basically what my examiner said, tell me how you arrived at this number and why. He didn't care what I used to get to the number, even monkey bones, just how I got there. He's much younger than many DPE's that others I know had used so he's a bit more "hip" to today's technology in my opinion.

I like to pitch over to zero g and let the Monkey Bones float in front of me and reveal their wisdom.

MrMorden wrote:I like to pitch over to zero g and let the Monkey Bones float in front of me and reveal their wisdom.

I just blew coffee out of my nose! I had both in my bag (paper and electronic), only ended up using the EFB on my PPL checkride except a sectional he pulled out of his bag (I had one as well). When in doubt, ask the DPE ahead of time. In my case he did not care so long as I could arrive at the correct number, could explain how it was calculated, and most importantly how it impacted the flight. Ex. Weight and balance and its effect on stalls.