Sport Pilot Talk

I recently gave a non-current private pilot a ride in my non-LSA Ercoupe. He is considering buying an Ercoupe that is sport pilot eligible and flying it under SPL rules with a drivers license as a medical. He needs to get current and would like to get checked out in an Ercoupe. I suggested he contact a local CFI who has time in Ercoupes and has done my last two bi-annual reviews as well as bi-annual reviews for two other pilots in their Ercoupes at our local airport. Pending a check with my insurance guy, I offered the use of my plane to accomplish this. Then I started to wonder if that would be legal. Would he have to have a current medical or basic med to receive the training in my plane? Would this only work for him with a DL as a medical in a sport pilot eligible Ercoupe?

Since your 'Coupe is not an LSA, the CFI would have to be PIC. So, check the Open Pilot clause on your insurance policy, to see if a CFI instructing others is covered.

Thanks for the input! I think I am covered based on the language in the policy, but I am checking with my insurance guy to make sure. If I understand you correctly it doesn't matter that the PP doesn't have a medical because the CFI will be the PIC in my non-LSA Coupe. Once the PP has completed his currency / checkout he is then good to exercise SP privileges as a PP in a SP eligible Ercoupe.

hirschr wrote:If I understand you correctly it doesn't matter that the PP doesn't have a medical because the CFI will be the PIC in my non-LSA Coupe. Once the PP has completed his currency / checkout he is then good to exercise SP privileges as a PP in a SP eligible Ercoupe.

Yes, you understand correctly. That was exactly my thought.

The insurance people told me that as long as the PIC meets the below requirements we are good.

PART C: Any person holding a currently effective certificate issued by the Federal Aviation Administration
designating him or her a private, commercial or airline transport pilot, airplane category, with a single
engine land rating, who has a minimum of 300 total logged flying hours of which not less than 25 hours
shall have been in this make and model aircraft.

The only question with an Ercoupe is the make and model part - if make is ERCO and model is Ercoupe then I'd say we are fine. If make is Ercoupe and model is 415-E then maybe not.

Check the registration info by N number on faa.gov. if I had to guess, I'd say the make is Erco, and model is just 415.

In my opinion the model would be 415. The C, D, or E would be sub variants of the same model. This is how I look at it for Taylorcraft. I have time in BL, BC12-65, BF12-65, and BC12-D, but I lump it all together as B model time.

Just a quick follow up: The non-current pilot ended up buying the Ercoupe after two drips down to AL, one for a pre-purchase and one for a test flight - I assisted with both. The CFI I had in mind was a bit short of the 25 hours in type to meet the open pilot clause of my policy. But, the new Ercoupe owner was able to find a local CFI in AL and get the currency and check out he needed in his own plane over a couple of more trips. He flew it home last weekend!

Fasteddie - you may know this fella, his first name is George he claims to have bumped shoulders with you at MNV. Anyway, it was fun and rewarding to aid a fellow aviation enthusiast in his addiction LOL.