Preliminary Design Preliminary Design is the stage where the design is sized and developed in outline, leading to a three view drawing, performance and weight predictions. To help with this, LAA has developed a number of spreadsheets. Spreadsheet 1 is used to develop the basic geometry of the proposed aircraft, size the wing, fuselage and tail surfaces and work out some of the key parameters used later. Spreadsheet 2 is used to estimate the performance of the aircraft based on the geometry, initial weight estimates, engine power and guestimates of the drag coefficient and prop efficiency, allowing you to see how the performance is affected by changing each parameter in turn. Spreadsheet 3 is used to work out the critical structural speeds, develop the flight envelope and predict the aerodynamic loads on the main surfaces which can be used to size the structure, and as the basis for a load test program. The weight and balance spreadsheet elsewhere on our website allows the designer to quickly evaluate the implications on weight and cg of different positions for the crew, fuel tanks and baggage bay, and work out what empty aircraft weight and cg he must aim for. Thanks to the simplicity of these programs it takes only minutes to study the implications of changing the aircraft’s specification, for example the effect of changing the wing aspect-ratio, the trade-off between extra weight and cleaning up the airframe drag, extra power etc. Downloadable Spreadsheets Worked Spreadsheet Examples Design Tutorials

Association Documents ​ Memorandum of Association Click here... ​ Articles of Association ​ Click here... ​ Directors' Code of Conduct Click here... ​ Guidelines & Terms of Reference Click here... ​ Rules of the LAA ​ Click here... ​ Strut Governance Documents Click here...

Engineering Fees Project Registration Kit-Built Aircraft - £350 Plans - Built Aircraft - £50 ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Initial Permit Issue ​ Up to 450kg - £700 451-999kg - £800 100kg & above - £900 ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Permit Revalidation ​ Up to 450kg - £230 451-999kg - £280 1000kg & above - £310 Factory-Buit Gyroplane (FBG) - £310 ​ Note: For FBGs - if the last Permit revalidation was not administered by the LAA, an extra fee of £125 applies Permit Flight Release Certificate (PFRC) Initial Issue and one reissue - £25 ​ Issue 3 and subsequent reissues - £25 ​ Note: This fee only applies when LAA HQ are issuing a PFRC. There is no fee for an Inspector issuing a PFRC ​ Modification & Repair Application Modification & Repair Applications (except Repeat Mods) - min £100 Hourly rate beyond 2 hour's work - £55 ​ Repeat Modification Application - £50 Hourly-rate beyond 1 hour's work - £55 ​ STC Modification Application - £50 ​ Transfer from CAA CofA or CAA Permit to Fly to an LAA Permit to Fly Up to 450kg - £280 451-999kg - £320 1000kg & above - £360 ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Category Change Group A to Microlight - £200 Microlight to Group A - £200 ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Change of G-registration Fee Issue of Permit to Fly documents following G-reg change - £60 ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Replacement Documents (ref TL 2.12 ) Lost, stolen etc (fee is per document) - £25 Endorsement of report for replacement logbook - £25 ​ Payment Methods ONLINE You can pay for Engineering Services via the ONLINE SHOP BY CALLING HQ 01280 846 786 with card details BY INTERNET BANKING Account No : 26225220 Sort Code : 60-30-03 ​ Please note, for Permit revalidation & engineering fees, you MUST quote your aircraft registration. or your payment will not be credited to the correct aircraft record. ​ If paying from abroad, SWIFT code is : NWBKGB2L IBAN code is : GB81 NWBK 6030 0326225220

Inspector Training Seminars In 2018, the ‘Inspector Training Seminar’ (ITS) scheme was introduced. This means that, in order to continue operating as an Inspector, every Inspector must attend an ITS in the previous four years, as assessed on 31st March each year, as part of their recurrent training. All Inspector Training Seminars for spring 2024 have now been completed, there will be more Seminars planned for Autumn and Winter. Each Inspector Training Seminar is free-of-charge and includes a complimentary lunch. The day runs from 0930 to 1630. Any Inspector is welcome to book onto a seminar, effectively resetting their ITS attendance and therefore, recurrent training, early; but priority will be given to those Inspectors due for review by 31st March 2025. Please contact LAA Engineering for further details of exact venues and booking details.

Opening Times & Car Parking Opening Times Visitors will be asked to leave the exhibition area by 5.00 p.m. Friday: 9.30 a.m. to 5.00 p.m. Saturday: 9.30 a.m. to 5.00 p.m Sunday: 9.30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Car Park Car parking remains free. Follow sign posts to visitors car park. Please do not use the Exhibitor car park. Disabled parking is available. ​ Please note that entrance to the LAA Rally car park and exhibition site is separate from the Leicestershire Aero Club entrance (reserved for LAC members and other airfield users) How to get there Leicester Airfield , Gartree Road, Leicester, LE2 2FG Follow the Rally Car Park Signs

Over the years this has led to several commercially successful kitplanes (Europa, Streak Shadow, Sherwood Ranger), as well as designs that have been released for plans-building (Flitzer, Isaacs Fury, FRED) and a whole range of fascinating on-off personal aircraft – the Acro Advanced, Bonsall Mustang, Mickleburgh Sparrow to name just a few. ​ There will always be LAA’ers keen on the ‘retro’ look, but with ever-increasing fuel costs we foresee a greater emphasis in future on aircraft exploring higher efficiency, alternative powerplants (electric?) and renewable materials. High hangarage fees mean that aircraft enthusiasts are more than ever interested in folding or de-riggable aircraft that can be kept at home. Using the information provided by clicking the links below, the LAA hopes to stimulate interest in light aircraft design, help potential designers through the process and encourage the development of high quality designs. With the decline in UK manufacturing over the recent decades, it seems more than ever important to keep alive a thread of creativity and enthusiasm for design and development. For some, the ability to bring a personal design from first concept to a flying prototype provides the ultimate source of satisfaction within the LAA scene. Designing Aircraft Since its formation in 1948, one of the stated aims of the LAA has been to encourage the designing and building of new types of light aircraft. For our own purposes, we in LAA Engineering have been producing a series of Excel spreadsheets to use as tools in the verification of calculations in the many aircraft design submissions we deal with. The spreadsheets have been designed to carry out the various calculations that are necessary during the design of light aircraft. Some of them have been written against specific paragraphs in the design code CS-VLA, whereas others, for example, cover areas related to the development of aircraft undergoing flight testing. In addition, simple spreadsheets for straightforward mathematical calculations have been written. It is for information and educational purposes that these spreadsheets are now available to LAA members on the LAA web site. Use the buttons below for more information on each design stage: Preliminary Design Detail Design Certification/Approval

Trophies & Awards A number of prestigious Trophies and Awards are judged at the Rally, recognising the many superbly built and restored aircraft that attend. If you would like to enter your aircraft for judging you can do so on arrival. The judging team will be co-located with booking-in. ​ You can, however, download and complete the entry form beforehand. The list of the awards and the judging guidelines can be found here . Awards are only made to the owners of the aircraft and it is the aircraft that is being judged for the workmanship. Factory built aircraft less than 35 years old are not eligible. The judging team will ensure you are in all competitions for which you are eligible. The judges sometimes have difficulty finding an aircraft. Owners are therefore urged to download the free`What3Words’ app and use it to show their aircraft’s location when registering. All pilots who wish their aircraft to be judged are asked to display to the marshallers the large J found here . They will then direct you, if possible, to a convenient parking space. Please leave the 'J' visible in the windscreen to help the judges find your aircraft. Judging takes place from 13:30 to 17:00 on the Saturday; therefore, all entries must be received by 13:00 on Saturday.

Aircraft Maintenance Before accessing the maintenance documents below, please ensure you have read Technical Leaflet 2.19 - General Maintenance Schedule . Technical Leaflet 2.19 Other useful documentation is as follows: Maintenance Schedules Sample Engine Condition Monitor Blank Engine Condition Monitor AC 43.13-1B Chg 1 CAP 562: CAAIP CAP 661: MPDs Latest MPDs - not in CAP 661 CAP 747: Mandatory Requirements Breaking in an Engine Engine Pre-Oiler Schematic Forms, Checklists & Worksheets

Detail Design Having worked out a promising-looking layout, initial three-view and performance and weight specifications, now is the stage where the hard work begins of transforming concepts to working drawings. Essential decisions have to be made about types of material to be used, the structural arrangement, exact choice of powerplant and so on. You’ll probably need to make a cockpit mock-up to check the ergonomics and control system arrangements, and maybe build a flying radio controlled model of the design to give faith in the handling characteristics. With the basic geometry laid out, stress calculations and assembly drawings come next, then drawings of individual piece parts. Keep an up-to-date tally on weights. As the drawings get more detailed you must re-evaluate whether you are going to meet your original targets in terms of weight, strength and aerodynamic cleanliness, whether you need to re-visit your original assumptions or re-design from scratch. Is there a way that the part or assembly can be made more easily, more cheaply, lighter, stronger, more fatigue or corrosion resistant? Fewer parts and fewer joints generally means fewer problems and less weight. Can you use off the shelf parts rather than having to make them specially? Are there other aeroplanes around that have already solved a particular problem in a clever way? Will the aircraft be easy to inspect in service, easy to repair if it gets damaged? Can it be broken down for transportation? If the handling isn’t quite right when the prototype is test flown, does the design make provision for ‘tweaks’ to put it right? Does the design include reserves of strength to cope with weight growth in service and more powerful engines, or is everything pared down to the minimum? Design Tutorials

Ethanol-Free Mogas Please select the appropriate engine type link below where you will find information describing how to obtain clearance for an aircraft to use unleaded Mogas. For Rotax, Jabiru and VW engines, please see the E5 Mogas page. Continental Hirth 2 Stroke Lycoming Related Information Operating Information TL 2.20 Fuel Flow Checking Inspection Checks - Fuel Flow EASA Investigation on MOGAS EASA has issued the Final Report of the Safety Implications of Biofuels in Aviation (SIoBiA) This project was undertaken by the University of Aachen under a research contract to EASA. The Light Aircraft Association was represented during this project by Barr y Plumb, who was a member of the project steering committee. All aspects of t he use of Mogas containing biofuel additives were considered in the research programme and the final report from the project is now publicly available here . This is a summarised version of the SIoBia findings. Placards Cockpit Placard Fuel Filler Placard

Become an Inspector Are you interested in becoming an LAA Inspector? To understand the application process, read the 'LAA Inspector Application Notes' and 'Flow Chart' below. Please use the form below to apply and include as much detail as possible in your application. Complete applications can be emailed to the Chief Inspector, Lucy Wootton at [email protected] . INSPECTOR APPLICATION NOTES INSPECTOR APPLICATION FLOW CHART INSPECTOR APPLICATION FORM INSPECTOR APPROVAL INFORMATION

For part-built LAA projects, the new owner/builder needs to continue following the LAA amateur-build process. For already-flying LAA aircraft, the new owner simply takes on the responsibilities of the old owner for looking after the airworthiness of the aircraft. The restoration of an aircraft might range from dusting off the cobwebs and giving the engine a good service, to a full strip down to component parts and fabricating missing or damaged parts. It is also possible, in some circumstances, to import a part-built or completed aircraft from overseas. This is generally only possible where the type is already accepted by the LAA, the aircraft can be shown to have been amateur-built under a similar regime to that in the UK, and which is readily inspectable to confirm the build standard. A number of LAA types come under the heading ‘orphaned vintage types’. These are types that are no longer supported by their manufacturer and have been deemed ‘orphaned’ by the CAA (e.g. Austers). There are also some types that can elect to operate either on a Certificate of Airworthiness or on an LAA-administered Permit to Fly (e.g. Chipmunks). Buying an Aircraft Not everyone has the inclination, ability or time available to build an aircraft. The only route then is to buy a part-built aircraft for completion, a ready-flying aircraft or an aircraft in need of restoration. When buying an aircraft, the overriding message is ‘Buyer Beware!’ If you’re buying an aircraft that is already flying within the LAA system, you mainly need to satisfy yourself that it’s in an acceptable condition and meets your needs. LAA Inspectors are often happy to look over an aircraft for you to help you make a technical assessment of its condition. Another area you should consider is whether it has enough payload to take you where you want to go. When buying a partially-built aircraft or one from overseas, you need to make sure that the aircraft is eligible to hold a UK Permit to Fly and is in a configuration that the LAA can accept. It is usually a good idea to drop LAA Engineering an email to check before you part with large amounts of money. For further information, click the button below or look in the 'Classifieds' section of the LAA Magazine Click here for more information