![]() ![]() ![]() But it also closed the two-seat ultralight loophole. When the FAA introduced the new Sport Pilot initiative three years ago, its main purpose was to make light-plane licenses more accessible to the public. Problem was, these planes were so great for flying friends around that soon ultralight manufacturers were selling more of them than the single-seaters. And so for years the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) allowed some two-seat ships to operate under ultralight rules strictly for the sake of flight instruction. Of course, that would be insane: Plenty of people who thought they could teach themselves to fly have died proving otherwise. You can legally fly it without a pilot's license, without training - without any qualifications at all. of gas, doesn't fly faster than 63 mph and seats only one person. According to federal regulations, a powered ultralight is an aircraft that weighs less than 254 pounds, carries a maximum 5 gal. Welcome to the world of ultralight flying. This is the closest thing to flying the way it happens in a dream: just you, the air, and the Earth gliding past below you. Five hundred feet below, black cows graze in a paddock, ignoring the strange craft drifting overhead. I ease off the pedal and the craft lazily straightens out. It's twilight, and the Florida air is still warm. A mirror-smooth lake wheels beneath a dimming orange sky. It is not for sale otherwise at this time, except when bought with the Wasp harness.The world floats sideways as I press on the steering pedal. As an added incentive for selling the Wasp Power Harness, I will take $1000 off that price for this Sport-2 175, and sell it for $3975, but only when sold with the Wasp. This model glider now has a suggested retail price from Wills Wing of $4975. Since then, it has been on a rack in my garage, while my enthusiasm turned from hang gliding to tennis ever since. It is like-new, has no dings or blemishes. I found that I could easily handle this large glider, even though I was below the minimum weight range for it, and it handled well. I took three practice flights on the Sport-2 with my regular Wills Wing harness, one from Black Cap, and two from Sugar Hill, for a total of 3 hours and 15 minutes. I imagined practicing at the Airport and landing on those wheels, even considered the idea of taking off with them, given the extra horsepower of the Wasp with Vitorazzi engine (18hp compared to 14hp with the Mosquito). ![]() So I bought a brand new Sport-2 175 from Wills Wing, as well as an additional round basebar and a pair of 10 inch wheels, also from Wills Wing. In 2011, I decided I would not want to start flying my Wasp Power Harness with my ATOS-B, but would rather have an easier glider to practice on. But you'll have to come to Lakeview to get it, as I won't attempt to ship it. I am willing to sell it for half my cost to someone who might fly it, for only $5000. It has never been flown, and is just like new, but it has been broken in. In 2011, I logged only 5 hang gliding flights, only 3 in 2012, and 1 in 2013, and the harness stayed in the garage for the whole summer of 2013 and since. But by this time much of my enthusiasm for flying had dissipated, as I had begun playing tennis with friends almost every day. I set up a test stand in the backyard where I did break-in sessions, running the engine for varying periods of time, during the summer of 20. The financial transaction was complicated by the need to convert to British pounds and wire money, and the cost was 5435 pounds, plus bank wiring charges, for an actual cost of $9938. It was built for someone close to my size of 5'10", 170 pounds. It was ordered with a folding prop, but arrived with a fixed prop (necessary for break-in, according to Chris) so he still owes me a folding prop for it. I placed the order in January, 2010, but due to severe family problems that year, Chris was not able to complete my order until December, 2010, and I didn't get it until January, 2011. With 18hp on the Wasp Vitorazzi engine as compared to 14hp on the Mosquito, I made that choice, and began talking to Chris Taylor of Wasp Systems, UK. I had decided on the Wasp after worrying that the Mosquito did not have enough power to get me off the ground at Lakeview altitude of 4800 ft. ![]() I decided to pursue this dream in the Fall of 2009, (I was much younger then) imagining that I would fly it with my Atos B. As I approach the end of my 77th year, I have come to realize that my dream of powered hang glider flight around Lakeview and elsewhere, is not likely to be realized. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |