In a ceremony with Brazilian aviation specialists and authorities, SEAMAX Aircraft delivered its first aircraft certified under ANAC’s ALE (Aeronave Leve Esportiva) rules in Brazil, an equivalent to the FAA’s Light-Sport category in the U. S.
SEAMAX has been already certified in a dozen countries, and last year, after Brazilian Aviation Authority, ANAC, regulated the ALE category following international ASTM standards, the SEAMAX M-22 became the third approved model under this category in Brazil.
The Seamax M-22 was the first amphibious aircraft to obtain the Type Certificate in Europe in 2005, even before the effectiveness of the Special – Light-Sport Aircraft (S-LSA) category, in addition to approval in several countries around the world. It is the earliest amphibious aircraft currently in production to hold an approval in the S-LSA category back in 2008, by the USA Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). After the ruling of the equivalent category in Brazil, the Aeronave Leve ESportiva Especial (ALE-E), which became effective in 2017, Seamax M-22 obtained the final approval of ANAC in April 2019.
For an aircraft to obtain the ALE certification, it must be approved in all the ASTM standards requirements, ranging from the project’s design through its manufacture to customer support. The certification transfers the responsibility of the product to specialized professionals, who in turn are liable to the screening of the requirements required in the standards, removing the responsibility of the operator as it is done in the case of experimental aviation where the operator “flies on its own sole risk.”
The aircraft certification as ALE-E (Sport Light Aircraft – Special) allows the aircraft operation in densely populated areas, allowing operations in large urban centers such as Campo de Marte airport in São Paulo capital, or Pampulha airport in Belo Horizonte. These operating rules will enable the operator to fly shorter routes without deviating from large centers.
The certification also allows the Seamax M-22 to be used for flight instruction, validating the hours required to obtain a private pilot’s license and allowing the operator to obtain “amphibious clearance.” It can be used as a glider tug and to provide small services.
The company’s CEO, Dr. Gilberto Trivelato, says this achievement “will allow the company to integrate and leverage the Seamax M-22 aircraft as an effective instrument for leisure, services and as well as personal transport in Brazil.
The company adds that after 20 years of continuous engineering improvement, the SEAMAX M-22 is mature enough to allow the company to transfer technology to the United States. “This has been a very bold but conservative, gradual, and very well planned move for our company,” says Shalom Confessor, SEAMAX executive director for the U. S. “SEAMAX is continuously listening to the voice of the customer and the most prominent aviation experts and connected with the most reputable aviation institutions in the globe before we decided to bring the assembly operations to the United States,” adds Confessor. SEAMAX assembly in the USA is located in Daytona Beach, Fla.