Is Part 103 all there is?

Ultralight pilots talk a great deal about Part 103. So what is Part 103? The FAA regulates all aircraft, creating and enforcing the requirements for them and for pilots. FAR stands for Federal Aviation Regulations. Part 103 is the section that governs ultralights. The good is that the FAA has set minimal regulations for ultralights. This is good, and at the same time bad. To keep from having to be greatly involved in ultralights, the regulations are very short and to the point. That the good. The bad is that those regulations set some less than desirable limitations on ultralights. You'll find help in understanding what those limitations and minimal regulations are in this Forum.

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Badland-F5 Pilot
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Is Part 103 all there is?

Post by Badland-F5 Pilot »

In many discussions, Part 103 is all that is referred for the requirements of ultralights. This however leaves a good portion of useful information on how Part 103 regulations are administered out. The FAA Advisory Circular 103-7 and Part 91 provide answers to questions about Part 103. Attached here are FAR Part 103, the accompanying part, and Part 91. These were found on other websites and forums because the FAA PDF versions, well they suck. They look like they were scanned from paper documents back in the early 1980's.

Todd C.
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Faa-Part103Appx.pdf
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FAA-Part91.docx
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FAA-AC103.docx
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FAA-Part103.docx
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Antoinette
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Re: Is Part 103 all there is?

Post by Antoinette »

This is a legitimate question, not an opening salvo-- for some reason people elsewhere tend to view my confident statements as provocative when in fact they were simply well researched and / or based on my personal experiences...

In my personal opinion, the following are relevant...

All of part 103 including the appendixes... deleting the lighter than air, weight shift, and unpowered sections if you operate a conventional powered heavier than air craft. This document is in my hangar.

I carry a copy of my certified empty weight, and the Appendix 1 and 2 worksheets with me in the "Part 103 Aircraft." Rotax was kind enough to place a horsepower rating on the data plate, so I followed suit on my home made powerplants. My "not permanently attached," quick disconnect, red, plastic, marine fuel tank* clearly states "capacity 5 US gallons."

In my opinion that covers every base.



* mixed fuel not used immediately is recycled to non critical uses (bikes, lawnmowers)
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