Airworthiness Inspection

Now that I have my N-Number assigned for my Powered Parachute, the next step in the process is to have an "airworthiness inspection". This is an inspection of my aircraft, done by a FAA representative authorized to inspect and issue the airworthiness certificate for my aircraft.

I started looking for someone to perform the airworthiness inspection and I was directed to a person about 120 miles away. From all indications this is the closest person to perform this task. So, I contacted him and started working on the process.

Now my Powered Parachute is what is called a "Fat Ultralight" which means it does not meet the definition of an ultralight aircraft. This aircraft exists because of an exception that FAA granted to the ultralight manufacturers to make 2 seat ultralight aircraft for training purposes, which this is. What this also means is that it never had, nor was required to have, an official airworthiness inspection.

Now, any registered aircraft is also required to have an annual inspection. The initial airworthiness inspection will qualify for that inspection for the first time. But next year another inspection will be needed. Our government in a wise decision involving Light Sport Aircraft, authorized owners to take a 16 hour course and become qualified to perform the annual inspection on their own aircraft, thus saving hundreds of dollars each year for the aircraft owners. After quickly evaluation the costs savings, I signed up, took the course and passed it.

Now, back to the airworthiness inspection. Having received my aircraft registration paperwork from the government, I contacted the inspector (commonly referred to as a "DAR" or Designated Airworthiness Representative) and provided him a copy of the registration. He in turn sent me some paperwork about what he requires before the inspection. I also asked him if there were any pet peeves he finds when he inspects aircraft. I wanted to be ready for anything he may look for, especially for his pet peeves.

To my pet peeve question plus several other questions I had asked, I soon discovered that all his answers involved referencing a regulation or maintenance manual. No real answers were provided. So I started to dig into the books.

Then he required me to have a compass on the aircraft. Well, a compass is a good idea but it is not required, at least not for Light Sport Aircraft, which mine is one. I do have a GPS that does the same thing but from his lack of answers on the compass issue, I assumed he will not accept a GPS instead of a compass. He did clearly state that he could not pass the aircraft without a compass on board complete with a compass correction card.

I started to get concerned so I started to research all the references he was giving me. I soon realized that he was making references to "amateur built aircraft", in other words, airplanes built from scratch. Well, mine is not that. It is a fully assembled, flyable, fat ultralight being converting to an Experimental Light Sport Aircraft (E-LSA).

Next he mentioned the test flight phase, which I was aware of. He mentioned that I needed to document various speeds to include stall speeds in slow level flight and in the landing configuration. He comments implied that an airspeed indicator was required.

If you do not know anything about a Powered Parachute, the one fact to know is that if flies at one speed and one speed only. It takes off, flies level, and lands at the exact same speed. More power only makes you climb while less power lets you come down. If you shut the engine off you still fly at that speed, which is anywhere between 25 and 35 miles an hour depending on the load in the aircraft.

Obviously, this DAR knew little about a Powered Parachute. Also, based on his comments, I was concerned about other requirements he may have that he has not mentioned yet. So, I contacted other people I know in the industry and asked them.

Now back to the inspection class. One of the people I asked about these apparently strange requirements was the instructor of that class, who is also a DAR. I did not choose this DAR because he is much farther away than the original DAR I selected to use.

I was advised buy 3 different people in the industry, to include this instructor, that I should consider switching to another DAR for the airworthiness inspection. And that is what I did decide.

Now back to the inspection class again. This class taught us how to do an annual inspection on our personal aircraft. The airworthiness inspection is basically the same thing except the DAR is telling the FAA that at this point the aircraft is safe to fly, and that the DAR will issue the necessary paperwork indicating so. I decided to use the services of the class instructor, who is a DAR, to perform my airworthiness inspection.

As part of the preparation for the airworthiness inspection, the owner must prepare the aircraft. This means clean it, fix anything that is broken, perform all required maintenance, and have the aircraft ready for inspection. Since this class taught me what to look for as far as things that are wrong, I got a head start over the average pilot.

But, I did not realize at the time that if my instructor from the inspection class performs the airworthiness inspection on my personal aircraft, which I had prepped for the airworthiness inspection, it would be like taking a second final exam for the class I took. My aircraft better be ready for the exam, or I may fail, not just my aircraft.