Tandem Flight—How to Get Started!

The best way to get introduced to the sport of powered parachuting is to fly in one! If you have a friend who owns one, take him up on the offer to go flying. If someone nearby isn't available, you can also go through a tandem training flight. One of the Easy Flight instructors can take you up for a half hour or hour flight showing you the fun and ease of our kind of flying. It also gives you a chance to get used to flying in a very open cockpit! Better yet, the training time with an instructor is time that can be logged towards your pilot license. And, with Easy Flight, we deduct the price of the introductory training from the price of the course.

Generally tandem flights are conducted on weekends. However, if you would like to fly during the week, we can usually accommodate your schedule. In any case, it is always best to call ahead for an appointment. That way we can make certain to do the final coordination needed.

All you need to do is call or E-mail Easy Flight with your flying plans. Most flights begin a couple of hours before sunset, but sunrise flights are also available for the early birds.

After you have your appointment, we should stay in touch the day of your flight to make sure that the weather will hold for us. For a look at forecast winds for tonight, check out the link below. Like most weather tools, it is not always right, but it tries really hard.

Looking forward to hearing from you!.

Ultralight Pilot

The ultralight rules are spelled out in Part 103 of the Federal Aviation Regulations or FAR's. The rules allow for some of the most free flying in the world, although it is restricted to single place operations. Ultralight powered parachutes may also be known as powered paraglider trikes or paramotors, with the largest differences being in the control systems and power available. Conventional powered parachutes usually have a little more power (normally two cylinder motors vs. one cylinder motors) and use foot steering rather than hand steering.

Training to become an ultralight powered parachute pilot is more about safety than earning a license, especially since there is no license to earn! Training should begin with dual training, which is why it is always good to seek out a powered parachute CFI for your initial training. They can take you flying allow you to control the aircraft and prepare you to solo your own powered parachute. Make sure that you log that time with your instructor, too. That's because that training time can be applied towards a Sport Pilot certificate if you some day want to advance in the sport.

Sport Pilot Powered Parachute

Becoming a Sport Pilot Means Becoming an Accomplished Pilot

The biggest benefit to becoming a sport pilot is the ability to take friends and family along for the ride. Many of us not only enjoy flight, but want to share the experience with others. Two seat powered parachutes and the sport pilot rules allow that to happen. Of course becoming a Sport Pilot is a lot more rigourous than becoming an ultralight pilot. After all, when you are taking someone with you, the FAA wants to make sure that you meet some kind of qualifications.

If you are just starting out in powered parachutes and you don't have any FAA licenses yet, the whole training and licensing process can seem a little daunting. It doesn't have to be. Flying a powered parachute is one of the easiest skills to pick up while at the same time being very rewarding. But while the skill of flying can be picked up quickly, powered parachutes still share the sky with plenty of other aircraft and their pilots need to know the 'rules of the road'. That is where training and licensing come in. Visit "Becoming a Sport Pilot Powered Parachute" to learn more.

Private Pilot Powered Parachute

Being a Sport Pilot for powered parachutes satisfies the flying needs of most pilots. After all, the big benefit is to take someone along for the flight. Private pilot offers some additional advantages, mostly being the ability to fly at night, flying powered parachutes with more than two seats (Yes, they exist!) and being able to fly at higher altitudes. Some people just want to possess one of the most exotic ratings in the FAA inventory!

Whatever your motivation, Easy Flight can help you become a Private Pilot for powered parachutes. The best approach is to earn your Sport Pilot rating first because the total time needed to become a private pilot for powered parachutes is 25 hours, which is quite a lot of flying. Since much of that time can be done solo, it makes sense to earn the Sport Pilot endorsement, go home and fly, and come back to finish up the private pilot certificate.

Transition from Private Pilot Airplane

If you are already an airplane pilot (or glider pilot or hot air balloon pilot or weight shift control pilot, or gyroplane pilot or helicopter pilot for that matter) the transition to becoming a powered parachute pilot is pretty simple if you want to fly with sport pilot privileges. If you want to fly as a private pilot, there is a little more work to do.

If you are wanting to fly as a sport pilot, you don't have to take a knowledge test, fly lots of hours with a powered parachute CFI, or visit a designated pilot examiner (DPE). All you need to do is train with one powered parachute CFI until that CFI is confident that you are safe, competent, and ready to take a proficiency test. Then that CFI provides you with a recommendation to another CFI who uses the practical test standards to administer a proficiency check. If you pass the check, you get signed off with sport pilot powered parachute privileges.

If you already have a private certificate, you may want to get a private rating in powered parachutes. Check out the link below to discover more of your options.

Practical Test

The Practical Test is the last step to becoming a sport pilot, private pilot, or flight instructor. There aren't many powered parachute examiners out there (only 22 nationwide) and not all of them are always active. That means that after working with your local flight instructor, you may be taking a roadtrip to visit with a DPE to complete your journey to pilot. It's important that you go prepared, because your examiner is prohibited from training you during the test. He (and yes, all 22 are he) can only administer the test.

Before you make an appointment with a Designated Pilot Examiner (DPE) there are things you can do to best prepare yourself for the powered parachute check flight. Visit the link below to help get yourself prepared!

Expect to spend about half a day on the practical test including both the oral and flying portions. Closer to a full day for the CFI practical test. Naturally, that kind of commitment is not done on a 'walk-in' basis. You should be coordinating with your DPE well before you arrive for your appointment.

Become an Instructor

Some of the most important people in the sport of powered parachuting are the flight instructors. Without flight instructors, we can't train new pilots and get more people interested in the sport. Powered parachute instructors often end up also being regional experts in the sport, being the go-to folks for questions about flying, regulations, maintenance and more. It ends up being a natural requirement most aircraft manufacturers have for someone becoming a dealer for them. After all, the person selling the powered parachute will probably be the person whom the customer goes to for instruction. Even if your interest is simply in helping other people —and perhaps that's the best reason— you should consider becoming a powered parachute flight instructor.

Like becoming a pilot, there is more than one way to become a powered parachute flight instructor. If you are already a flight instructor, then the transition is pretty easy. It is similar to the transition process for an airplane pilot becoming a powered parachute pilot. If you aren't a flight instructor now, there are some requirements (including flight time, knowledge tests, and a check ride) that the FAA needs you to complete before you can begin teaching others.

Roy Beisswenger is one of only a dozen examiners in the country who are authorized by the FAA to administer the Sport Pilot Powered Parachute CFI Practical Test. If you want to begin helping others get into the sky, Easy Flight is the place to go. He can advise you on the steps to take to become an instructor. However, a good starting place is the link below.

16 Hour Maintenance Inspection Course

If you own a two-seat powered parachute, chances are that it was certified as an 'Experimental-Light Sport Aircraft' or E-LSA. The good news is that the FAA already allows you (or anyone else) to perform any needed maintenance on your experimental aircraft. However, once a year every aircraft needs an annual inspection in order for it to be considered airworthy. If you own an E-LSA powered parachute, you can visit an Airframe and Powerplant Mechanic, a Light Sport Repairman Maintenance mechanic or —with proper training and certification— you can do the inspection yourself.

The process is not that difficult. FAA regulation §65.107 allows the owner of an Experimental Light-Sport Aircraft to earn a Repairman (LSA) Inspection rating by attending an FAA accepted course. Successful completion of the course allows you to perform the annual condition inspection on any Experimental-LSA powered parachute you own now or in the future.

The courses only take 16-hours to complete and are normally held over the weekend to make it easier to fit into aircraft owners' schedules. The class goes over the regulations and information you need to perform your annual inspection.

If you would like to get your certificate for inspecting your own powered parachute, contact Easy Flight and ask to be put on a contact list.

For more information or to sign up for the course, visit here or call 1-877-735-9572.

Designated Airworthiness Representative

If you purchase a new powered parachute or other Special or Experimental Light Sport Aircraft, you may need an airworthiness inspection if the factory does not do it for you. Easy Flight is the only DAR location for E-LSA and S-LSA Powered Parachutes, Airplanes, and Weight Shift Control aircraft in Southern Illinois. If you need an aircraft inspection you can get it done here.