This airplane is a joy to fly and looks sharp on the rampThe light sport aircraft certificate was never meant to produce sturdy utility airplanes or all-purpose trainers. It was meant to make airplanes affordable and fun, and the Arion Lightning LS-1 embodies that spirit. This airplane is a joy to fly and looks sharp on the ramp.

Crossing the threshold in the Arion Lightning LS-1

While not exactly spacious, the Lightning’s cockpit does offer plenty of room for two. Seats are fixed to the floor with a traditional stick protruding from the floor which feels quite natural and comfortable. A huge bubble canopy provides amazing visibility, and Arion offers a great sun shade option to prevent that bug-in-a-magnifying-glass effect on hot summer days.

Arion’s lightning has excellent flying qualities and reminds me of a lighter, snappier Diamond DA20. The controls are very sensitive, but not at all twitchy. It is easy to over-control the airplane, but things smooth out if you fly with wrist motions instead of leveraging your whole arm. It has the feel of an aerobatic trainer and is somewhat reminiscent of a Van’s RV-6A.

With hangar doors open, the Lightning LS-1 is ready for flight

I get the impression that this airplane wants to be aerobatic even though it’s not certified for such topsy-turvy flying. Sporting large ailerons, this airplane can roll at 100º/second. Built from a sturdy fiberglass mold, the fuselage and wings are solid. As an LSA, the Lightning is certified to +4 G/-2 G but has been tested to a whopping +9 G!

This airplane’s Achilles Heel is the fact that it is an LSA, which limits its versatility. If you’re looking to have a blast in an LSA, the Lightning LS-1 is a big win. But if you are open to all categories, a used Pitts or RV might be worth a look, just because they are certified to do more.

Like most LSA’s, the Lightning has a useful load of about 500 lbs, depending on options. There isn’t a whole lot of room in the back for cargo, so this shouldn’t factor too heavily into your weight and balance calculations.

Arion chose the six cylinder Jabiru 3300 engine for the Lightning LS-1. The official fuel burn is only 5.5 gallons per hour and the engine is capable of accepting Mogas as well as Avgas. Engine vibration is very low and the ride is smooth.

If you’re looking for a primary trainer, this airplane is probably not for you. It flies well, but the controls are just too sensitive for the first-solo student. Pilot-induced oscillation is a real possibility and it would be very easy for a beginner to get into trouble – particularly when landing.

Clean lines and mini-winglets distinguish the Lightning LS-1

The Lightning LS-1 embraces the sport concept in light sport aircraft. Its sensitive controls could catch a few pilots off guard, but that’s what gives the airplane its fun and dynamic characteristics. A maneuverable little plane, the Lightning is a welcome addition to the light sport category and might be the perfect hot rod for those who have lost their medical certificate.

Nestled in the hills of Middle Tennessee lies the quiet town of Shelbyville, home to JabiruUSA, a growing powerhouse in the light sport aircraft category. I took a ride in the Jabiru J230, an LSA that feels like a jet, hauls like a truck and looks like a 152 — with winglets!

Leading with the rudder, the Jabiru J230 makes coordinated steep turns easy

Originating in Australia, the J230 was made to fly long cross-countries comfortably. The ride is smooth and the airplane requires very little pilot input in cruise. Even flying on a bumpy Tennessee afternoon, turbulence wasn’t a factor. The Jabiru gently bobs and weaves with the bumps, but always returns to the desired attitude with minimal control input.

Unlike most light sport aircraft, the J230 controls are solid. Jabiru designed fluttery controls out of the airplane by linking the controls to springs. The pilot works against the spring to deflect the controls. The downside of this is that the pilot doesn’t get a lot of tactile feedback from the control surface itself. In this way, it feels more like flying a jet than a tiny high-wing.

Jabiru's unique shared flight stick allows plenty of leg room in the cockpit

When we think of LSA’s, we generally don’t think about hauling a lot of stuff, but this airplane is built like a truck. The baggage area is huge and easily accessible through a third door behind the pilot’s seat. It’s perfect for golf clubs, pets, or packing your camping supplies for the pilgrimage to Oshkosh.

In terms of load, Jabiru’s J230 is comparable to most conventional LSA’s. It has a useful load of about 500 lbs, just like Cessna’s Skycatcher or Evektor’s Sportstar MAX. That’s enough leeway to carry a passenger and 50 lbs of cargo with about 1.5 hours of fuel on board, or to fly solo with 100 lbs of cargo and the fuel tanks topped.

At it’s heart, the J230 features a 120 hp Jabiru 3300 engine. Sporting six cylinders, the engine runs a lot smoother than the four-cylinders we’re used to in light aircraft. The engine also lightens pilot workload with fully automatic mixture control – there isn’t even a red knob on the panel to mess with. But this powerplant really stands out in fuel-sense. Jabiru’s spec sheet shows an average cruise fuel burn of 5.5 gallons per hour and runs your choice of Avgas or 91+ Octane automotive fuel.

The top of the line avionics by Jabiru USA features a Grand Rapids Technology GRT Sport SX EFIS with a Garmin GDU275 MFD

Jabiru built a beautiful and forgiving airplane with the J230. With it’s big cargo area and respectable useful load, the airplane is perfect for long-distance flights. It handles well and might be an ideal sport pilot trainer due to it’s easy flight characteristics. A brand new Jabiru J230 starts at $112,000 and averages $125,000 with options.

Find out more at JabiruUSA Light Sport Aircraft

While the rest of the world was fixated on the Paris Air Show, I was schmoozing with the folks at the Cessna Aircraft Factory in Wichita Kansas. I met up with Cessna’s piston-engine chief pilot, Kirby Ortega, for a flight in Cessna’s LSA: the Skycatcher.

Read my review of the Cessna 162.

The Skycatcher is a sharp looking high-wing

The Cessna 162 Skycatcher is a fun plane to fly. It’s easy on the controls, exudes stability and is very docile. Think of it as a snappier and faster version of the 152 fitted with a fancy glass cockpit by Garmin.

In cruise, the Skycatcher handles just like you would expect any high-wing Cessna to fly: predictable and stable. But be warned, the elevator is particularly sensitive at low speed. This is actually pretty common with LSA’s due to their lightweight control surfaces and Cessna came up with a pretty clever fix.

They installed a gurney strip – a small drag-inducing fence on the elevator to increase pilot control forces. It gets the job done, but I can’t help but wonder whether some sort of spring or bungee system might have felt better.

I flew the Skycatcher through a series of manuevers and the airplane performed well. Steep turns were a breeze and slow flight was very forgiving. I get the impression that the 162 doesn’t want to stall. The airplane insists on dipping the nose and recovering itself from power-off stalls.

The C-162 flight stick's full range of motion

Power-on stalls on are a blast! The airplane wants to power out of the stall and it becomes a bit of a wrestling match to keep the angle of attack in the critical range. But mind those rudders! My sloppy footwork snapped the airplane into a quarter-turn incipient spin in no time. The good news is that the airplane recovered itself as the rudder traveled through neutral with the power back to idle. Easy.

Skycatcher’s new stick deserves a mention. If you’re not familiar with it, Cessna came up with an outside-the-box stick concept. It looks a bit like what would happen if a flight stick and control yoke had a baby. The 162′s stick pushes in and out for elevator control, which seem pretty natural.

But the stick’s aileron control is where it gets inventive. The stick moves left to right with a slight twist which felt really awkward during the flight control check on the ground. But the stick feels quite natural in the air as it simulates the motions of a normal floor-mounted stick without taking up the pilot’s leg room.

Fixed seats, adjustable rudder pedals and an out-of-the-way stick make for a roomy LSA cockpit.

Speaking of leg room, the Cessna Skycatcher is remarkably spacious for an LSA. The seats are spaced apart a little wider than they were in the 152 and the adjustable rudder pedals and floor-level seats provide a sports car-like feel.

Don’t let that last sentence trick you. The Cessna Skycatcher is no hot-rod, nor does it claim to be. Stable and predictable, this airplane is a basic trainer through and through. As more flight schools look to capitalize on the growing sport pilot trend, Skycatcher just might be the perfect replacement to the beloved C-150.

You can find out more about the Cessna Skycatcher by visiting Cessna’s product site.

Skycatcher Photos

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Cessna delivered the first Cessna 162 Skycatcher today. The aircraft was delivered during a ceremony at Yingling Aircraft in Wichita, Kansas – Cessna’s corporate headquarters. The first aircraft was delivered to Rose Pelton, the wife of Cessna CEO Jack Pelton.

The Skycatcher marks Cessna’s first foray into the new Light Sport Aircraft category which defines LSA’s as an aircraft with a maximum gross weight of 1,320 pounds and a top speed of 120 knots. Like all modern Cessna aircraft, the 162 features a fully integrated glass cockpit.

Cessna launched its Skycatcher program at EAA Airventure 2007 and has since amassed more than 1,000 orders for the light sport aircraft.