This page
Other pages
Country report Germany
We have two organisations, responsible for organizing microlight activities and are responsible für licencing, type certification an type approval: DAeC, which is our NAC and DULV, which is an independent organisation.
The DAeC (microlight department) has 2.300 activ members, issued this year 700 new licences and has registered 2.500 microlights including microlight gyrocopter.
Chairman of the microlight part of DAeC is Wolfgang Lintl. He is as well board member of DULV.
The DULV has 5.000 members, issued 1.000 new licences this year and has registered 2.000 microlights.
We have had this year national championships with 18 participants in AL2, WL 2 and two gyro.
Special situation:
Since a few years in Germany we have a new class of microlight named „leichte Luftsportgeräte“ or may by in English "light microlights".
These microlights are very similar to the US FAR Part 103 machines.
The empty weight is 120 kg which includes the compulsory parachute.
The speciality of this class ist, that
there is no type certificate, but a type approval
The rules for building are the same as for "normal" microlights.
The maintenance is in the hand of pilot or owner in accordance with the rules, written by the manufacturer.
There is no annual inspection by a certified inspector, but there might be a similar requirement by the manufacturer.
There is no need for a registration number, but you can apply for and will get a D-M-Registration as every microlight.
Regarding a licence
you will educated with the same syllabus as normal, and you will get the licence lifelong.
A holders of a microlight licence need a hospitalization. No medical required.
The LBA Luftfahrt Bundesamt (Federal Aviation Office) has to accredit for example DULV and DAeC as authorised body to issue the type approval.
It is not clear, if the same rules like medical and licence apply, if you have a "normal" microlight with type approval
and
type certificate, but under 120 kg empty weight.
All this is in power for powered paramotors (footlaunchend and as a PPG-Trike) and trikes. Not for threeaxis.
For threeaxis the FAO wants to have strikter rules (Bauvorschriften) as maximum 25 kg/qm wing load, minimum operational speed 55 km/h, not more than 20 l fuel and a MTOW between 250 - 300 kg.
There is a demand for threeaxis 120 kg-microlights from a small group of old pilot, who fear to loose there medical.
On the other side we have two or three manufacturer, who are building carbon fibre machines with similar performance as the big and heavy machines.
From our point of view these special restrictions are absolutely senseless and there is no valid reason for that, especially no reason regarding safety.
We had a long discussion with State Secretary of Ministry of Traffic and FAO, but we made no progress. One of the stupid arguments of our opponents was: With more fuel these machines seems to be able to fly across Europe. What can you say against this?
At the time we do not force the negotiations on this subject.
The reason is, that we got signals out of the administration to change the medical requirements for microlight pilots at all. This is due to the relaxed standards for LAPL - Pilots. Our goal is of course a regulation like in France or Great Britain. But this are dreams of the future.