On Fri, 11 Aug 2006 08:16:54 -0500, Jim Carriere
wrote:

Ron Wanttaja wrote:
SLSAs must be constructed in accordance with the process that the FAA has
accepted meets the consensus standards, and must be maintained in accordance
with the standards. ELSAs must also be constructed in accordance to the
process, but once certification is receive, the owner is not required to
maintain the aircraft in accordance with its certification.

So... the owner of an ELSA could, in the course of "maintaining" the
aircraft, change out everything except the data plate and end up with a
very different aircraft. Talk about major repairs, maybe we'll see a
niche market around "repairman assist" modifications, violating the heck
out of the spirit and intent of the rule.

You're absolutely correct. The owner of an ELSA, once the airplane is initially
certified, can change practically anything.

We won't even have to worry about "repairman assist" issues, because there *are*
no Repairman Certificates for ELSAs. Just like Experimental/Amateur-Builts,
anyone can maintain or modify them. But the "Light Sport-Inspection" license
permits you to perform the annual on any ELSA that you own...not just the plane
you built, like the Exp-Ambuilt Repairman Certificate. And you can get the LS-I
license after a 16-hour course.

Like I said earlier, any owner can take a production LSA (SLSA), change the
certification to Experimental LSA (ELSA), and thereafter maintain and modify it
as he or she wishes.

Getting an inkling on why Cessna is going to certify its new LSA in *normal*
category, not SLSA? :-)

Ron Wanttaja