Aeromarine
LSA Introduces the Electrolite® Ultralight
Features
Pilot-Assist Controls, allows specific ultralight training.
Yes, you can again
learn ultralighting in your (single-seat) Electrolite® with an instructor.
DUAL-CONTROL True
Part 103 Ultralight!



Oshkosh, WI, July
22, 2019:
The Electrolite®, introduced today at Airventure Oshkosh 2019, is a dual-control
true single-seat Part 103 ultralight. Its flight characteristics are benign and
its low sink rate lets it double as a self-launching glider, while remaining
within the Ultralight Rule. Dual control? Yes. Really. Dual. In an ultralight.
The
Electrolite has all-electric power for low-cost, smooth, fume-free and quiet
joy in the air. The interchangeable battery pack provides an hour of power, longer
than the typical ultralight’s dawn patrol or evening sortie. And, because of
its feather-like sink rate, you can “throttle back” and thermal at
will!
Chip
Erwin, lifetime ultralighter, watched the industry get decimated by the FAA’s
ban on two-seat ultralights in 2008. “Our sport was left to die,” he
said. “The extinction of these training aircraft created a significant
safety issue in primary flight training, as it choked this affordable way into
the air. But,” he added, “Part 103 remains the purest kind of flying,
and I’ve been looking for a way to stay legal and still provide useful
instruction so that new ultralighters can be safe as they transition from ‘heavier
iron.’ With our ‘ground-based dual control,’ a solo pilot can follow on the
stick and rudder, or fly ‘with supervision’ until he’s comfortable flying the
craft on his own.”
Erwin
says his dual-controlled Electrolite is the solution. “By adding servos
and an electronic flight control system to the Electrolite, we have created a
true, legal ultralight that can be controlled by a flight instructor on the
ground as well as by the pilot in the aircraft. This is a perfect solution for
a pilot transitioning to an ultralight, as maneuvers can be demonstrated just
as if the instructor were sitting alongside. And even more important for a new
pilot: the instructor can take full control at any time, even to the point of
deploying the [standard] ballistic parachute. Safety has been greatly enhanced
with this innovation.”
Erwin
notes that the ground-based instructor can fully control the ultralight. Helping
him is a first-person view from the cockpit, a split-screen view of the pilot,
and pilot biometrics transmitted in real time from the craft. “Yes, that
means the Electrolite could be flown without anyone in the seat at all – but
why miss the fun?” [It’s also a different kind of aircraft if unmanned,
so, although unmanned flight is technically possible, it is not legal.]
The
Electrolite is not just a trainer. “It’s every bit an ultralight, with the
thrill of open-air flight, slow-flight capabilities, and unlimited visibility.
Its electric power offers fresh air, serene flight, and low maintenance as
well. Fly slow, low and quiet! Your eyes won’t water and the bugs don’t hurt!”
Learn
to fly this electric-powered ultralight simply and, for the first time in
decades, safely.
More
information: www.aeromarine-lsa.com; and hi-res
photos: Email: Chip@wetaero.com
See the
Electrolite in the Main Aircraft Display Booth 195