LAMA Looks to Expand Its Worldwide Presence

Dan Johnson, president of the Light Aircraft Manufacturers Association held a press conference at AirVenture on Wednesday. He outlined the state of the industry to date — with more than 108 aircraft models from 72 manufacturers in the fold. He also discussed a new safety website where potential buyers can go to learn about safety concerns and best practices for selecting a product. Johnson quickly got to the issue of international consistency among light aircraft manufacturers. He introduced Jan Fridrich, who announced the formation of LAMA Europe, an association targeting the large number of manufacturers from that part of the globe. More than 50 percent of S-LSAs come from the 36 European manufacturers that signed on for the new organization. Johnson stressed the importance of worldwide consistency in aircraft standards. Fridrich said, “The air is the same on both sides of the ocean, so why should the rules be different?”