Class B, C, and D endorsement

On September 1, 2004 the FAA inaugurated a new pilot certificate dubbed the "sport pilot" that makes learning to fly easier and more affordable that ever. Intended primarily for recreational use, you can now become a pilot with as little as 20 hours of flight instruction! In addition, the FAA also created a new category of affordable "light-sport aircraft"!

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AirBoss52
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Class B, C, and D endorsement

Post by AirBoss52 »

I am currently PPSEL, and am going to be operating as Sport Pilot soon.
Because I have been operating in towered air space for 20 years, is an actual endorsement still required to exercise SP privileges in class B, C, and D airports?
TimTaylor
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Re: Class B, C, and D endorsement

Post by TimTaylor »

No, you are a Private Pilot. Those endorsements are for Sport Pilots. You won't be operating as a Sport Pilot. You will be operating as a Private Pilot exercising Sport Pilot privileges and limitations. But no, you don't need those endorsements.

By the way, when did your FAA medical expire? If it was valid anytime after July 14, 2006, you can still exercise your Private Pilot privileges and limitations by following the Basic Med protocol. You don't need to limit yourself to Sport Pilot privileges and limitations unless your FAA medical expired prior to July 14, 2006 or you choose not to take advantage of Basic Med.
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FastEddieB
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Re: Class B, C, and D endorsement

Post by FastEddieB »

Tim has it exactly right.

The day my medical expired, I was limited to Light Sport privileges and limitations, in spite of holding a valid Commercial certificate. Such as no flight above 10,000’, no flight without visual reference to the ground, no night flying and stricter ceiling and visibility requirements. Seemed a bit silly, since an expired medical had no bearing on the skill sets I had acquired over the years, but it was what it was and I followed the letter of the law in my Light Sport Sky Arrow.

But as Tim suggested, BasicMed removes all of those limitations, and makes available a wide new bevy of aircraft. You are still expected to adhere to the Light Sport aircraft’s Limitations, such as they are, but they are usually less restrictive.

If BasicMed is an option, it’s definitely the way to go.
Fast Eddie B.
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TimTaylor
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Re: Class B, C, and D endorsement

Post by TimTaylor »

Correct, except you adhere to Light Sport aircraft limitations only when flying a light sport aircraft. When flying a Cessna, Piper, Mooney, etc., you adhere to those. I guess that's obvious, but if he goes Basic Med, he may or may not ever fly LSA. I just wanted to make that totally clear. If I qualified for Basic Med, I would not be flying LSA. I would be flying a Mooney. I love the SkyCatcher and Remos I fly, but I love the M20C even more.
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AirBoss52
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Re: Class B, C, and D endorsement

Post by AirBoss52 »

Thanks for all the replies. Unfortunately, Basic Med is not an option for me.

I’m looking at the Arion Lightning as my foray to the world of Light Sport.
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Warmi
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Re: Class B, C, and D endorsement

Post by Warmi »

AirBoss52 wrote:Thanks for all the replies. Unfortunately, Basic Med is not an option for me.

I’m looking at the Arion Lightning as my foray to the world of Light Sport.
Yeah, you can get them relatively cheap -70k or so for a 6-7 years old model. The only potential problem is the engine - Jabirus are pretty rare and unless you plan to work on it yourself , it is going to be hard to find a mechanic familiar with it.
Flying Sting S4 ( N184WA ) out of Illinois
AirBoss52
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Re: Class B, C, and D endorsement

Post by AirBoss52 »

Well, that’s the ballpark. And I live pretty close to Shelbyville, so Jabiru maintainers are readily available.
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foresterpoole
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Re: Class B, C, and D endorsement

Post by foresterpoole »

There are three I know of that are for sale, one at Arion in Shelbyville, one in California and the other in Pennsylvania. All are experimental, all below 70K. Different avionics I think one has an autopilot (PA Aircraft), the others I am unsure of, the one at Arion has been up for sale for awhile now...
Ed
TimTaylor
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Re: Class B, C, and D endorsement

Post by TimTaylor »

Make sure you check for damage history. I think many of these have damage history.
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