….While An Industry Waits

“Manufacturers and pilots are waiting for this,” EAA spokesman Dick Knapinski told AVweb on Saturday, “and we’d like to get it expedited. The sooner the better.” The proposed new rules would create a Sport Pilot certificate that would make it easier for students who want to fly for fun to earn a certificate, and create a new category of Light Sport Aircraft that would be simple and cheap to operate. Knapinski said EAA had been hoping for some action by October. “We haven’t heard of any hurdles,” he said, and there is no clear reason for the delay. “There’s no penalty for DOT if they don’t meet that deadline. And there are no official progress reports on these things.” So, the waiting game goes on.