On Thu, 10 Aug 2006 18:33:37 -0400, "Peter Dohm" wrote:

No matter what he builds from Home Depot lumber it isn't ever going to be
an ELSA.

Perhaps, and perhaps not.

At the moment, they appear to still be pretty busy working on kit
certification. However, it appeared (by reading between the lines in an
interview with Marion Blakely) that plans built ELSA is in the future. It
would then be "out of character" for custom built aircraft and/or small
designers of plans to be specifically excluded.

I think the basic problem would lie in the certification process. Ignoring the
grandfathered aircraft, ELSA certification requires two things: That an example
of the aircraft be built and certified as an SLSA, and that the ELSA builder
strictly conform to the materials, processes, and design of that example SLSA.
You can't change the engine, you can't change the radio, you can't make a single
deviation from the manufacturer's construction manual UNTIL your plane receives
its ELSA certification.

Thus, the plans must specify the materials to be used. The structural wood
elements will have to be spelled out. Conceivably, the designer could just
specify "Hemlock with XXX rings per inch, with the grain slope no more than
X:Y," etc, which means you *will* be able to go to Home Depot Aerospace and hunt
and pick for conforming wood.

However...remember, the designer has to certify the aircraft as a
production-type LSA. It's going to be a lot easier for him to specify "Spruce
conforming to XXXX standard."

Either way, there can be problems afoot for the plans builders. In both cases,
a hard-nosed FAA inspector could demand proof that the wood on the aircraft
meets the standard specified by the designer. If the designer specifies a
particular grade of spruce, you can probably show the appropriate receipts. But
if the designer merely states the qualification criteria for wood selection,
this might be a bit more difficult to provide sufficient proof.

ELSA is NOT Experimental-Amateur Built. There are some significant differences.
If you're building, the only advantage you get with an ELSA certification is
that a later owner can receive an LS-I certificate that lets them do their own
annuals. Otherwise, you're much better off as Exp-Am.

Ron Wanttaja