The Light Aircraft Association (LAA) is the representative body in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

for amateur

aircraft An aircraft ( aircraft) is a vehicle that is able to flight, fly by gaining support from the Atmosphere of Earth, air. It counters the force of gravity by using either Buoyancy, static lift or the Lift (force), dynamic lift of an airfoil, or, i ...

construction, and recreational and sport flying. It oversees the construction and maintenance of

homebuilt aircraft Homebuilt aircraft, also known as amateur-built aircraft or kit planes, are constructed by persons for whom this is not a professional activity. These aircraft may be constructed from "scratch", from plans, or from assembly kits.Armstrong, Kenn ...

, under an approval from the UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA). The LAA was formerly known as the Popular Flying Association and was originally founded in 1946 as the Ultralight Aircraft Association.

LAA Permit regime

The regime for approving amateur-built aircraft in the

differs from that in many other countries, of which the United States is the prime example. Instead of the FAA's Experimental airworthiness category, under which an amateur may design, build and operate (and is ultimately responsible for) an aircraft 'for experimental purposes', the UK CAA is required to investigate any such aircraft's 'fitness to fly' and to issue a 'Permit to Fly' when satisfied. The LAA is approved by the CAA to make recommendations for and to revalidate such Permits. Aircraft on a LAA Permit may not be operated commercially and are limited to Day / VFR operation, unless approved for Night /

IFR In aviation, instrument flight rules (IFR) is one of two sets of regulations governing all aspects of civil aviation aircraft operations; the other is visual flight rules (VFR). The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration's (FAA) ''Instrument Fly ...

. There are also nominal limits on the number of seats (four) and on maximum take-off weight (2500 lbs), power (260HP) and stalling speed (70 mph). The Permit is valid only in UK airspace unless by agreement with another State, which is normally obtainable for countries in the

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are Geography of the European Union, located primarily in Europe. The u ...

and many outside it. The Permit has to be renewed annually after the aircraft has been inspected by an inspector appointed by the LAA. The LAA's remit extends to homebuilt

autogyro An autogyro (from Greek and , "self-turning"), gyroscope, gyrocopter or gyroplane, is a class of rotorcraft that uses an unpowered rotor in free autorotation to develop lift. A gyroplane "means a rotorcraft whose rotors are not engine-d ...

s but not to

helicopters A helicopter is a type of rotorcraft in which lift and thrust are supplied by horizontally spinning rotors. This allows the helicopter to take off and land vertically, to hover, and to fly forward, backward and laterally. These attribu ...

. Factory-built classic and vintage aircraft that are no longer supported by their manufacturer have difficulty obtaining a

Certificate of Airworthiness A standard certificate of airworthiness is a permit for commercial passenger or cargo operation, issued for an aircraft by the civil aviation authority in the state/nation in which the aircraft is registered. For other aircraft such as crop-spray ...

, and in such cases the CAA may transfer the type to LAA Permit. The LAA's remit includes amateur-built

microlights Ultralight aviation (called microlight aviation in some countries) is the flying of lightweight, 1- or 2-seat fixed-wing aircraft. Some countries differentiate between weight-shift control and conventional three-axis control aircraft with ailer ...

but does not extend to factory-built microlights, which are covered by the BMAA. The BMAA's remit substantially overlaps with that of the LAA; but occasional proposals for the merger of the two associations have met with considerable resistance, mainly from the BMAA's majority membership of 2-axis microlight pilots.

History

Following a letter in the

Flight Flight or flying is the motion (physics), motion of an Physical object, object through an atmosphere, or through the vacuum of Outer space, space, without contacting any planetary surface. This can be achieved by generating aerodynamic lift ass ...

by Risteard Mac Roibin an aircraft engineer who suggested that it should be possible to regulate ultra-light aircraft without the expense of a Certificate of Airworthiness, it would have to be a tested and approved design and be checked by a licensed aircraft engineer. The article led to the formation of the Ultra-Light Aircraft Association, with the first meeting being held on 26 October 1946. The first priority of the association was to convince the government that light aircraft did not need a Certificate of Airworthiness. The government agreed that the association could issue a Permit to Fly for aircraft not exceeding 1,000 lb in weight, maximum engine power of 40 hp and a landing speed of no more than 40 mph. The supervision during construction and final inspection would need to be done by ULAA inspectors. The association took on the name Popular Flying Association in 1949. Initially, and still primarily, an engineering organisation for approving designs for homebuilding and regulating their construction and maintenance, it is now also active in encouraging sport and recreational flying and campaigning for a regulatory regime that will provide as little restriction as possible, consistent with safety, for the construction and operation of

and Classic and Vintage factory built aircraft that can no longer hold a full Certificate of Airworthiness. Membership in 2011 was around 8,000. It publishes a monthly full-colour member magazine, ''Light Aviation'' (formerly ''Popular Flying'') and holds its annual Rally at

Sywell Aerodrome Sywell Aerodrome is the local aerodrome serving the towns of Northampton, Wellingborough, Kettering and Rushden, as well as wider Northamptonshire. The aerodrome is located northeast of Northampton and was originally opened in 1928 on the edge ...

on the first weekend in September, probably the largest gathering of light aircraft outside the USA. It has a network of Member Clubs (known as "Struts") throughout the UK, each providing a geographically centred social focus for LAA members, to which members of the public are warmly welcomed. There are also a number of Type Clubs, catering to members who are constructing or operating certain aircraft types. The Association changed its name to the Light Aircraft Association (LAA) on 1 January 2008, along with the magazine's name being changed to "Light Aviation"

References

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External links

Light Aircraft Association
Aviation organisations based in the United Kingdom Aviation trade associations Aylesbury Vale Business organisations based in the United Kingdom 1946 establishments in the United Kingdom Organisations based in Buckinghamshire Organizations established in 1946