Ultralight aviation

During the late 1970s and early 1980s, many people sought to be able to fly affordably. As a result, many aviation authorities set up definitions of lightweight, slow-flying aeroplanes that could be subject to minimum regulation. The resulting aeroplanes are commonly called "ultralight" or "microlight", although the weight and speed limits are rarely the same between any two countries.

There is also an allowance of another 10% on Maximum Take Off Weight for seaplanes and amphibians, and some countries (such as Germany and France) also allow another 5% for installation of a ballistic parachute.

The safety regulations used to approve microlights vary between countries, the most strict being the United Kingdom, Italy and Germany, while they are almost non-existent in France and the United States. The disparity between regulations is a major barrier to international trade and overflight, as is the fact that these regulations are invariably sub-ICAO, which means that they are not internationally recognised.

In most affluent countries, microlights or ultralights now account for about 20% of the civil aircraft fleet.

Ultralight aircraft are generally called microlight aircraft in the UK and New Zealand, and ULMs in France and Italy. Some countries differentiate between weight shift and 3-axis aircraft, calling the former microlight and the latter ultralight.

The U.S. light-sport aircraft is similar to the UK and NZ Microlight in definition and licensing requirement, the U.S. 'Ultralight' being in a class of its own.

Definitions

United States

The USA FAA's definition of an ultralight is significantly different from that in most other countries and can lead to some confusion when discussing the topic. The governing regulation in the United States is FAR 103, which specifies an "ultralight" as a single seat vehicle of less than 5 US gallons (19 L) fuel capacity, empty weight of less than 254 pounds (115 kg), a top speed of 55 knots (102 km/h), a maximum stall speed not exceeding 24 knots (45 km/h), and are only allowed to fly during daylight hours and over unpopulated areas. Weight allowances can be made for two-seat trainers, amphibious landing gear, and ballistic parachute systems.

In 2004 the FAA introduced the "Light-Sport Aircraft" category, which closely resembles other countries' Ultralight categories.

In the United States no license or training is required by law for ultralights, but training is highly advisable. For light-sport aircraft a sport pilot certificate is required, which is similar in requirements to other countries' Ultralight license.

Canada

Europe

The definition of a microlight according to the Joint Aviation Authorities document JAR-1 is an aeroplane having no more than two seats, maximum stall speed (V_S0) of 35 knots (65 km/h) CAS, and a maximum take-off mass of no more than:

300 kg for a landplane, single seater; or
450 kg for a landplane, two-seater; or
330 kg for an amphibian or floatplane, single seater; or
495 kg for an amphibian or floatplane, two-seater, provided that a microlight capable of operating as both a floatplane and a landplane falls below both MTOM limits, as appropriate.

Note: Foot-launched aircraft are excluded from this definition.

Types of Aircraft

3 axis fixed wing. This has a regular airplane configuration - conventional 3 axis control for yaw, pitch and roll using ailerons, elevators and rudder control surfaces. There are many 3-axis ultralights on the market.

2 axis fixed wing. Some of the first generation ultralights were "2-Axis" which do not have ailerons, this means that, to turn, only rudders are employed. An example of a 2-Axis ultralight is the "Pterodactyl".

Weight shift. Known generally as "trikes", these ultralights have their roots as powered hang gliders. These are essentially a hang glider-style wing, below which is suspended a three wheeled cart. The aircraft is controlled by pushing against a horizontal bar in roughly the same way as a hang glider pilot flies. Trikes generally have impressive climb rates and are ideal for rough field operation.

Powered parachutes - cart mounted engines or motor scooters with parafoil wing.

Powered paragliding - backpack engines with parafoil wing.

Gyrocopter - rotary wing with cart mounted engine (see autogyro), a gyrocopter is different from a helicopter in that the rotating wing is not powered, the engine provides forward thrust and the airflow through the rotary blades causes them to "spin up" and create lift.

Helicopter - there are a number of single-seat and two-place helicopters which fall under the microlight categories in countries such as New Zealand. However, few helicopter designs fall within the USA's more restrictive ultralight category.

Hot Air Balloon - there are numerous ultralight hot air balloons in the US, and several more have been built and flown in France and Australia in recent years. Some ultralight hot air balloons are hopper balloons, while others are regular hot air balloons that carry passengers in a basket.

Safety

Ultralights used to have a poor safety record, mostly due to insufficiently trained pilots. That is no longer the case, with most countries now requiring an Ultralight Pilot's license/certificate, often regulated by one or more delegated pilot's organizations.

The build quality and airworthiness of Ultralight aircraft (and homebuilt light-sport aircraft in the USA) now equals that of Certified light aircraft, and some types satisfy both sets of requirements and are available for registration to either Ultralight or Certified status. When registered as an Ultralight (or Experimental-LSA in the USA) the pilot is permitted to do more of the simple maintenance tasks, resulting in a lower cost of operation, although sometimes at the cost of restrictions such as avoiding flying over populated areas, in clouds, or at night. Many older pilots are willing to trade these operational restrictions for a lower drain on their retirement income, and as a result many Ultralights are now flown by experienced General Aviation pilots or ex-commercial pilots. This effect has meant that the experience level of the average Ultralight pilot has risen and now probably equals, and may even exceed, that of the average GA pilot.

The Future

Ultralight/microlight aircraft were once regarded as "flying clotheslines", since early aircraft were typically completely open, wire, tube and rag aircraft – naturally these aircraft were seldom used for anything more than local area flying.

However, ultralights are rapidly transforming into high performance aircraft, capable of very respectable speed and range. In recent years there has been a dramatic rise in the number of General Aviation pilots flying high performance ultralights due to the cost benefits.

These aircraft are now often referred to as recreational aircraft.

A rapidly growing area of the class is scale-replica "warbirds", such as the offerings from Titan Aircraft and Loehle Aircraft.

External links

Ultralight Regulations in Various Countries

Ultralight/microlight organizations

Ultralight aircraft

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