MOSAIC benefits

My personal airplane is an experimental/amateur-built Van’s Aircraft RV–4, and I’ve long assisted the licensed airframe and powerplant mechanic who performs the yearly condition inspections by doing as much of the dirty work as possible.

Tires, brake pads, wheel bearings, oil filters, oil screens, spark plugs, cowlings, and fairings are largely my domain—while engine compression check, borescope, and other high-skill tasks are the mechanic’s specialties.

Since I didn’t build my RV–4, I lack the FAA repairman certificate that would allow me to sign off condition inspections myself. Instead, an A&P mechanic oversees my handiwork, casts aspersions on my functional but unartistic safety wiring, and approves the work so long as it meets standards. Under the Modernization of Special Airworthiness Certification (MOSAIC) regulations, I could work on my RV–4 by earning a repairman certificate (light-sport) with an inspection rating (LSRI).

I attended an intensive weekend LSRI training course by Sport Aviation Specialties in Covington, Georgia, in the spring, and the experience provided convincing evidence that process is in good hands.

First, the instructor, G. Michael Huffman, is a highly experienced aircraft builder, pilot, aircraft owner, and aeronautical engineer. And the fact that he’s a Southerner means he’s also a storyteller who can spin a yarn—usually with a safety moral at its heart.

His story about a rudder cable detaching from his Skybolt biplane (an aircraft he later sold to singer John Denver) was particularly memorable. Fortunately, he was able to land safely without damaging the aircraft—but the woman he took on a flying date that afternoon wasn’t willing to go out with him anymore.

Most of my 20 or so fellow LSRI students were experienced aircraft owners and builders with a great deal of mechanical knowledge and ability. About half had built kit airplanes of their own, and they were getting LSRI certificates so they could perform condition inspections on others that they had acquired or planned to acquire. Several were also professional pilots.

The 16-hour Sport Aviation Specialties course, which going forward will be conducted by the Lancair Owners and Builders Organization, was about 75 percent lecture and 25 percent hands-on maintenance exercises. The course emphasizes inspections—how to evaluate whether an item is airworthy or not. It’s not, and doesn’t pretend to be, a class on how to fix things.

The course ended with a 50-question exam, and students needed to score 70 percent or higher to pass.

In discussions with other students, we were all enthusiastic about taking a more active role in maintaining our own airplanes. Few, however, thought they’d save money as a result of becoming LSRIs.

“I still intend to hire an A&P mechanic to double-check my work and serve as a second set of eyes,” said Howard Greenberg, a flight instructor and co-owner of a Van’s Aircraft RV–10 in Florida. “The [LSRI] certificate should allow me to get more involved in the maintenance side of aircraft ownership—and I think that’s something I’ll benefit from and enjoy.”

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