One trend we noticed at Sun ‘n Fun last week — more and more LSA manufacturers are finding that flight schools are interested in their products. The LSAs are less expensive to acquire and operate, and they can be used for flight training right up to ATP. Now that the aircraft have been around for a few years, and have a track record and some maturing of designs, flight schools are finding them hard to resist. Case in point was the decision, announced last week, by the Florida Institute of Technology’s FIT Aviation program to utilize new Remos GX 2009 light sport aircraft not only for its flying club but also for primary flight training and time-building in its professional pilot curriculum. “We were very impressed by the useful load factor in the Remos,” said Nick Frisch, director of FIT Aviation. “The fact that we could fill it with fuel and take up two large adults with room for plenty of baggage, spoke highly of the aircraft’s capability.”
Copies of various LSA designs were flown by the flight training staff and students at FIT Aviation. “We asked everyone who flew the airplanes for their overall impressions, their response to the ergonomics, the layout of the aircraft, its performance and handling. … In the end, nine out of ten picked the Remos GX,” said Frisch. The staff was also impressed with the folding wings of the Remos aircraft. “We’re in hurricane country,” said Frisch, “and we have a new hangar that’s designed to withstand hurricane-force winds. The fact that we can fold the wings on the Remos allows us to store four of them in place of one aircraft that won’t fold up.” Florida Tech opened the $5.1 million Emil Buehler Center for Aviation Training and Research at Melbourne International Airport earlier this spring. The center serves as home base for the school’s flight training programs.
