Sport Pilot Talk

Since AMD went out of business in 2009, they don't issue LOAs; my airplane is an orphan.

There was no clear regulatory route to swap out my GPSmap 396 for an Aera 660 and install the GDL 39R and GDL 82 for ADS-B compliance, and I wanted to replace the bungee cord nose strut shock with the Viking "steel bungee", so changing the certification from SLSA to "Experimental operating as light sport" was the logical way to do both. Experimental certification also permits me to do my own maintenance, and with my LSR-I certificate I can now perform my own condition inspections.

Scooper wrote:Since AMD went out of business in 2009, they don't issue LOAs; my airplane is an orphan.
There was no clear regulatory route to swap out my GPSmap 396 for an Aera 660 and install the GDL 39R and GDL 82 for ADS-B compliance, and I wanted to replace the bungee cord nose strut shock with the Viking "steel bungee", so changing the certification from SLSA to "Experimental operating as light sport" was the logical way to do both. Experimental certification also permits me to do my own maintenance, and with my LSR-I certificate I can now perform my own condition inspections.

Stan,
Is your airplane equipped with BRS?

Wm.Ince wrote:Stan,
Is your airplane equipped with BRS?

Hi Bill,
No; it doesn't have any airframe parachute system.

Let's see, now... BRS. Isn't that Boris (Popov's) Recovery S#!7?

(Said with the highest of respect. Boris is presenting an EAA Webinar on whole-airframe parachutes on two weeks.)

drseti wrote:Let's see, now... BRS. Isn't that Boris (Popov's) Recovery S#!7?
(Said with the highest of respect. Boris is presenting an EAA Webinar on whole-airframe parachutes on two weeks.)

Yep! I'm all signed up for it and others (including your TBO presentation, Paul).

I received one LOA for my new Bristell. It was for an inertia real on the shoulder harness so I could lean forward and touch the G3 X on the right side of the panel. I found one at Oshkosh last year, presented it to Bristell through the local folks in Lancaster, and shortly received an LOA signed by Milan Bristella, the owner of BRM Aero. There was no charge and all were very cooperative.

Ed Rawlings wrote:I received one LOA for my new Bristell. It was for an inertia real on the shoulder harness so I could lean forward and touch the G3 X on the right side of the panel. I found one at Oshkosh last year, presented it to Bristell through the local folks in Lancaster, and shortly received an LOA signed by Milan Bristella, the owner of BRM Aero. There was no charge and all were very cooperative.

That’s great, another reasonable manufacturer.

Of course , given how much they charge for their planes, LOAs should arrive in a golden box with a complimentary bottle of wine

Ed Rawlings wrote:I received one LOA for my new Bristell. It was for an inertia [reel] on the shoulder harness, so I could lean forward and touch the G3X on the right side of the panel. I found one at Oshkosh last year, presented it to Bristell through the local folks in Lancaster, and shortly received an LOA signed by Milan Bristella, the owner of BRM Aero. There was no charge and all were very cooperative.

That is an excellent upgrade. What's more, excellent on how Bristell handled it. It speaks about the support customers receive there.
Any way you can post a link to that product for us? Would love to install one in my airplane.

Ed Rawlings wrote:I received one LOA for my new Bristell. It was for an inertia real on the shoulder harness so I could lean forward and touch the G3 X on the right side of the panel. I found one at Oshkosh last year, presented it to Bristell through the local folks in Lancaster, and shortly received an LOA signed by Milan Bristella, the owner of BRM Aero. There was no charge and all were very cooperative.

Thanks for the info Ed, this is great news. And as Wm.Ince stated this is incredible customer support on their part, how refreshing this must be.

Did it come in a gold box with a bottle of wine? Did Milan hand deliver it himself?

And do post the seatbelt make/model you chose, I'm also interested in a set for my SportCruiser.

ShawnM wrote:. . . . . And do post the seatbelt make/model you chose, I'm also interested in a set for my SportCruiser.

If you do indeed install that in your Sport Cruiser, Shawn, I guarantee you are going to love it.

Wm.Ince wrote:If you do indeed install that in your Sport Cruiser, Shawn, I guarantee you are going to love it.

Yes. I'm certain I will. I can reach my entire panel just fine. I have a hard time reaching the fresh air vent on the copilot side which in just under the panel and set back a few inches.

I hope Ed posts the info here. The Bristell is a cousin of my SportCruiser.

The inertia reel and shoulder belt can as a unit after I gave the measurements and coupler type to Aircraft Belts, Inc. They will make whatever you want and were helpful and easy to deal with. Web site is www.airbelts.com. My contact was Greg McCullough 919-956-4204. No bottle of wine from Bristell, though.

Ed Rawlings wrote:The inertia reel and shoulder belt can as a unit after I gave the measurements and coupler type to Aircraft Belts, Inc. They will make whatever you want and were helpful and easy to deal with. Web site is http://www.airbelts.com. My contact was Greg McCullough 919-956-4204. No bottle of wine from Bristell, though.

Thanks for all the details Ed. I’ll reach out to them very soon.

I actually have a spare (newer) set of belts for my plane that I can even send them. I want to get them rewebbed to a different color and then they can fit the inertia reel. This way there’s no guesswork on the measurements.

That’s too bad about the wine, I would have expected more from Bristell.

1. LSA manufacturer: Tecnam
2. Wait time for LOA: About a week.
3. Was there a fee? Yes, $150.
4. Does your manufacturer have an AEL? Not sure.
5. Rate the scale of difficulty for your experience getting a LOA. (1) Easy.

Received approval last week.

Flocker wrote:1. LSA manufacturer: Tecnam
2. Wait time for LOA: About a week.
3. Was there a fee? Yes, $150.
4. Does your manufacturer have an AEL? Not sure.
5. Rate the scale of difficulty for your experience getting a LOA. (1) Easy.

Received approval last week.

Once again, thank you for the response. Tecnam seems to have excellent customer support for owners.