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[Schmleff]

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[richardmw]

I am a Private Pilot with 700hrs (220hrs. tailwheel in a Piper Pacer ). I am not a builder . I have read that Steve Statkus was able to make his Sonerai 11L a light sport . My question is : Is it possible to take an existing 11L and alter it to meet LSA rules ( max 51 mph stall speed /138 mph max cruise ) . Any information would be appreciated .

[soneraifred]

Richard:
How Steve managed to get his Sonerai licensed as an E-LSA is anybody's guess, but he obviously did not have to prove the stall speed. Most Sonerai II's have stall speeds in the upper 50's. My IIL is in the neighborhood of 58 mph. There is no quick and dirty way to lower the stall speed. That is a function of gross weight, wing area, and the maximum lift coefficient of the airfoil. The only way that I can see to get the stall speed down to 51 mph, is to increase the wing area, and change the airfoil. If you are going to do all of that, you might as well get a Sonex, because that's what John Monnett did to get the stall speed low enough on that airplane.

Fred Keip
Sonerai IIL, N99FK

[chuck59]

Well, FWIW, here's the info from the plans seller.. including stall speed at 45 mph. ;D Mouser indicates 62 at the stall, btw..
Sounds like an LSA to me. It seems like I've seen Sonerai on a list of "approved" LSAs. That's my story, and I'm sticking with it.
S P E C I F I C A T I O N S
SPAN 18' 8"
LENGTH 18' 10"
HEIGHT 5' 5"
ENGINE 1700 - 2180CC
FUEL CAPACITY - STD. 10 GALLONS
FUEL CAPACITY - OPT. 6 GALLONS
EMPTY WEIGHT (No Starter) 520 LBS.
USEFUL LOAD 430 LBS.
GROSS WEIGHT 950 LBS.
WING AREA 84 SQ. FT.
WING LOADING AT GROSS 11.3 LB SQ FT
SEATS 2 TANDEM


P E R F O R M A N C E S
DESIGN LIMIT AT FULL GROSS +/- 4 G's
AEROBATIC LIMIT SOLO W/755 LBS. +/- 6 G's
TAKE OFF DISTANCE 900 FT.
STALL SPEED 45 MPH
LANDING SPEED 58 MPH
MANEUVERING SPEED 115 MPH
CRUISING SPPED AT 75% 140 MPH
VNE 200 MPH
RANGE W/45 MINUTE RESERVE 245 SM
RATE OF CLIMB AT GROSS 500 FPM

[dlynd]

I talked to the FAA up at Oshkosh about this last year and they said certifying the Sonerai as an LSA shouldn't be a problem. Don't forget that all LSA numbers are based on standard conditions at sea level.

Also cruise speed is set by what your cruise is at Max continuous power at sea level. As the manufacturer of your airplane you define what max continuous is and can set it for whatever RPM gives you the required cruise. See the carbon cub for an example. 180hp, but still LSA because they allow full take-off power for only 5 min, then call out a cruise RPM that gives you about 80hp. Same thing with gross weight. The airframe can have a gross weight of 1865lbs, but for LSA they limit it to 1320lbs. Same airplane, different paperwork.

Now if you have an accident and you were operating out of the LSA envelope that your pilot's license and insurance are based on that might cause you some problems.

[soneraifred]

Just a bit of clarification, and if I've said this before, I apologize. If you are building a Sonerai today, you CANNOT license it as an E-LSA. The E-LSA category now only applies to experimental versions of existing S-LSA factory-built airplanes. You can only license the Sonerai as an E-AB, experimental amateur built. You can fly any E-AB airplane (or factory built airplane for that matter) as a light sport airplane as long as it meets the definition of a light sport airplane. OK?

[bil438]

I was exploring the stall with engine at idle. Stall is 62 as Mouser says. Buffet starts at 65 and is quite noticeable.

[clutch mike]

I received an email with a funky password. I entered the password and it did work I think but nowI can't log in, it says I need to be approved again.

Am I doing something wrong I'm not away of?

Thanks guys!

[Schmleff]

Let me take a look.

[Schmleff]

Try and retrieve your lost password. Your account is active. If that does not work I will have to delete and start a new account for you.