20 April 2007
At the same time as Aero 2007 is happening in Germany, US light aviation is celebrating the coming of spring at Lakeland with the Sun ‘n Fun fly-in.
Traditionally the place at which the season’s new aircraft are unveiled, this year was no exception, with the first public appearance (on the ground) of Cessna’s Next Generation Piston (NGP) aircraft, alongside the Light Sport Aircraft (LSA). Both are still proof-of-concept models: although they’ve each flown respectable numbers of hours (126 and 78 respectively) the company has not yet made up its mind whether to go ahead and put them into production. At issue, apparently, is not just airworthiness but market position, financial viability and the more mundane questions of commercial life.
The NGP is a little larger than a Skylane; it has three doors and is currently fitted with a Lycoming IO-580 (other engines are being considered). The LSA is now fitted with a 100 hp Continental O-200, which is currently being evaluated. Like the NGP, this won’t necessarily be the engine that is used in any final production model.
