Permit Aircraft Electrics - Basic Course Price Member - £224, Non-Member - £244 (includes printed course material) Duration Arrival 09:00. Finish 17:00. < Back About the Course This course provides the theory and practical knowledge to enable the implementation of a basic electrical system in permit aircraft. Although the course necessarily includes a small amount of technical theory; it is only included at a level needed (essentially Ohms Law) to understand how wire sizes, fuses, circuit breakers and other components etc are selected. The basic premise of the introductory course is that the owner/builder already has a circuit diagram to work from (few kit manufacturers provide electrical diagrams, so the course includes details of where such ‘standard’ diagrams may be found). They are not expected to do any design work, but they do need to source the materials and components and build a working, reliable and safe installation. The course explains how to interpret a ‘typical’ permit aircraft electrical systems diagram and for every element, explains how to size, select and source components and then how to practically install them. The course uses a PowerPoint presentation for the theory side, a demonstration electrical panel in the classroom so that attendees can see the various options and good practice for wiring and systems installation and also runs two practical sessions in the LAA workshop which includes practical soldering, wire stripping and connector crimping, cable marking options, use of heat shrink, radio antenna coax connector installation and the correct crimping and installation of typical D Sub connectors used for avionics systems. What this course will try to do is: Introduce and explain the components of a wiring system Help you understand a circuit diagram Give practical experience in wiring techniques Give the knowledge to select and source cables and components Explain failure modes and reliability issues Help you conduct basic fault finding Warn about the ‘gotcha’ areas and the things to look out for What the course will not do is: Turn you into a design engineer Enable you to design an aircraft EWIS Enable you to fault find on an undocumented aircraft installation Solve interference issues Delve into avionics Your Instructor Mark Castle-Smith Dates TBC Times Arrival 09:00. Finish 17:00. Duration One day course Venue LAA HQ, Turweston Aerodrome, NN13 5YD Price Member - £224, Non-Member - £244 (includes printed course material) Booking Pls call the LAA on 01280 846 786 to enquire/book or email [email protected] . *Please note that payment is required when booking, to confirm your place. NO place will be held without confirmed payment* **Please note that your booking payment is non-refundable unless we can fill your place timeously or there are exceptional circumstances**

< Back LAA Training Day 30 Nov 2024 LAA Staff Training Day so LAA HQ will be closed. Next Previous

< Back MTD-06-2025 published - Europa Tailplane Torque Tube Mod Failure 16 Dec 2025 Ref: LAA Mandatory Technical Directive MTD-06-2025 – Europa Tailplane Torque Tube Clamp Mod A recent inspection of a Europa fitted with the tailplane torque tube clamp modification, LAA MOD 10623, revealed both halves of the clamp had broken and fallen apart. These clamps are intended to prevent relative movement between the tailplane torque tube, the tailplane drive plates and the central drive horn, on which the mass balance arm is mounted. Failure of these clamps could allow free play to develop, potentially leading to taper pin hole damage, tailplane flutter, or jamming of the pitch control mechanism. An inspection must be carried out within the next 5 flying hours to determine whether MOD 10623 is fitted. If MOD 10623 clamps are fitted, making use of a light source and mirror as necessary, inspect the alloy clamp blocks for any signs of cracking (in particular along the sharp corner between the bolt flanges and main body), for any signs of looseness or relative movement between the parts and for any other abnormalities. If any of these are detected, the aircraft must not be flown and LAA Engineering must be contacted. This must be repeated at intervals not exceeding 25 flight-hours or the next Permit revalidation inspection, whichever occurs first, for as long as MOD 10623 remains fitted. Please refer to the below Mandatory Technical Directive for full details, compliance times, and certification requirements. This MTD can be found HERE and is also available below. MTD-06-2025 - Europa Tailplane Torque Tube Mod Failure .pdf Download PDF • 259KB Next Previous

< Back Alert A-07-2025 ISSUE 2 - Glastar Aileron Servo-Tab Pushrod Cracking 16 Jun 2026 Alert A-07-2025 Issue 2 - Glastar Aileron Servo-Tab Pushrod Cracking This Alert has been issued to provide clarification on servo tab and aileron electric trim manufacturer options. Last year, Alert A-07-2025 was issued to address a cracked aileron servo tab pushrod that was found on a UK Glastar aircraft. Recently, an LAA Inspector pointed out that the alert’s language assumed that all Glastar aircraft were fitted with this device. To avoid confusion, Alert A-07-2025 Issue 2 supersedes Issue 1, clarifying that the servo tab and aileron electric trim are manufacturer options. The applicability of the alert has also been amended accordingly. Please refer to the LAA Alert A-07-2025 Issue 2 document below for full details and recommended checks. A-07-2025 Issue 2 - Glastar Aileron Servo-Tab Pushrod Cracking .pdf Download PDF • 610KB Next Previous

< Back Rally Entrance Tickets, Airside Passes and Camping Permits on Sale!! 18 Jul 2025 Entry Tickets and Airside Passes now on sale via the LAA Shop . Landing slots will be available soon. We have a special offer for non members - £50 for all 3 days including Airside. Available for purchase until 31st July 2025 Next Previous

< Back New LAA Inspector - Ben Davis 27 Nov 2025 We are pleased to welcome Ben Davis as a new LAA Inspector, having attended an LAA Inspector Assessment Day at Turweston recently. Ben has been an aircraft owner for about twenty years and has become something of a fan of the (mighty) Alpi Pioneer series. He’s owned several and flown several more. Ben has also refurbished and upgraded a number of Pioneers with new avionics, autopilots, and instruments. Along the way, he has owned and improved a Europa and a few other types, but he always seems to find his way back to a Pioneer! Ben also enjoys staring out of the front window of little biz jets. With a background in electronics, moving into avionics was a natural step for him. Ben is a Rotax iRMT (Line & Heavy), a BMAA Inspector, and now also an LAA Inspector, combining his technical background with years of hands-on experience. Ben is based at Finmere, just a short hop from LAA HQ, and is always happy to help other owners with maintenance, upgrades, or just a good aviation chat. You can find him sharing projects and flying adventures on social media as @benfly79. Next Previous

< Back New LAA Inspector - Craig Ransome 16 Mar 2026 We are pleased to welcome Craig Ransome as a new LAA Inspector, having attended an LAA Inspector Assessment Day at Turweston recently. Craig is an apprentice-trained B1 Licensed Aircraft Engineer who began his career as a Production Fitter with British Aerospace, working on the assembly of military aircraft. He later moved into the commercial aviation sector, gaining experience with several airlines and developing a broad range of maintenance skills. He achieved B1.1 (turbine aeroplanes) and later B1.2 (piston aeroplanes) licences, demonstrating proven capability in aircraft maintenance, fault diagnosis, and airworthiness certification. Next Previous

< Back MTD-03-2025 - Marquart Charger Aileron Slave Strut 25 Jul 2025 LAA MTD-03-2025 - Marquart Charger Aileron Slave Strut The starboard aileron slave strut on Marquart Charger G-BHBT failed at the AN490 threaded fitting welded into the bottom end. A large proportion of the cross-section was cracked due to fatigue prior to final failure. The root cause of the fatigue cracking was probably flutter. Due to the difficulty of reliably inspecting for fatigue cracking at the base of threads, it has been decided to withdraw this strut design from the UK fleet. MTD-03-2025 can be found HERE and is found below. MTD-03-2025 - Marquart Charger Aileron Slave Strut .pdf Download PDF • 194KB Next Previous

< Back The importance of airfield location 12 Feb 2024 The first results of a survey conducted by the new Strategic Airfield Network (SAN) indicate that location is the number one reason airfields consider themselves important. For more information, head to the Flyer article below: https://flyer.co.uk/location-location-location-airfields-are-important/ Next Previous

< Back Standard Modification for fresh air rotary ventilators added for Europa types 18 Oct 2023 A new Standard Modification (SM12871) has been uploaded to the website for Europa types. This covers the installation of rotary air vents in the forward cockpit to aid ventilation. Standard Modifications are used to enable other owners to install a modification on a given type, generally by following the instructions in the Standard Modification leaflet, having their inspector check and sign it off and letting LAA Engineering know that it's been installed. Further information on the Standard Modification process can be found in TL 3.06 Standard Modification leaflets can be found by following Engineering - Info Library - Engineering - Standard Modifictations. Technical leaflets can be found by following Engineering - Info Library - Engineering - Technical Leaflets. Next Previous

< Back New LAA Inspector - Sam McMellon 22 Oct 2024 The LAA is pleased to welcome Sam McMellon as a new LAA Inspector for Factory Built Gyroplanes. Sam attended an Assessment Day at LAA HQ with our Chief Inspector earlier this month. Well done Sam! 🎉 Next Previous

< Back New LAA Inspector - Andrew Williams 31 Mar 2025 We are pleased to welcome Andrew Williams as a new LAA Inspector, having attended an LAA Inspector Assessment Day at Turweston recently. Andrew has been involved with aircraft maintenance for approximately 36 years. Types he has worked on include Rolls-Royce Dart and Pratt & Whitney PT6-powered passenger and freighter aircraft, followed by working on short-to-medium range jet aircraft. For the last 10 years, Andrew has been involved with general aviation single and twin-engined aircraft, carrying out maintenance and certification. He holds a CAA approval to perform Airworthiness Reviews in order to issue Airworthiness Review Certificates. His qualifications include: CAA Part 66 Licence, inc. Full Group 3 and a BCAR Sec L Licence. In the LAA ‘world,’ Andrew has a share in a Jodel 1050. Congratulations Andrew. Welcome to the team! Next Previous