Xiangzhou District, Zhuhai

The light sport aircraft (LSA) Triton recently received a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Airworthiness Certificate, authorizing entry to the US market, according to Zhuhai Triton Technologies Inc. The Zhuhai-based company is an exclusively American-owned main production facility of Aeromarine LSA.

The Triton is the first Chinese LSA brand to be admitted to the US market and also the second Chinese aircraft with independent intellectual property rights to have obtained FAA certification. The first was the Harbin Y-12 commercial aircraft. 

LSA Triton acquires FAA Certificate. 

The certificate was granted after a final eight-hour examination in a hangar at a general aviation airport in Washington on Sept 2. 

According to Triton certification manager Xie Yixian, the FAA is an internationally recognized authority on aviation, and the approval is indicative of the high technological level and safety of the aircraft. 

FAA Airworthiness Certificate

Triton flying range is 1,100 km. [File photos]

The Triton is an all-aluminum alloy low-wing monoplane equipped with a new-type electronic fuel injection engine of the highest safety factor of the same aircraft level, and it also has complete digital display instruments. Its flying range is 1,100 km and it takes off on merely 120 m of runway or even from grass airstrips -- a huge advantage given the scarcity of runways at home. The aircraft has a wingspan of 8.8 m, length of 6.6 m, and height of 2.4 m. Its maximum take-off weight is 600 kg and maximum structural cruising speed is 202 kg per hour.

The Triton sport aircraft is designed for use in flight training schools and is among the most cost-effective models, according to Xue Guohang, the Chinese-American founder and aviation engineer of the company. 

Spain, the UK, France, and Australia have also shown willingness to be sole agents of the Triton in their domestic markets. “We will accelerate steps to gain a certificate from the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) as Europe is a significant market,” Xie Yixian said. 

Category-C airfield and flight school of Triton in Zhuhai are being reviewed for approval with support from military and civil aviation departments. By initially turning out a large number of pilots for the Pearl River Delta, Triton expects to prove the low cost of LSA flight instruction before promoting it throughout the country, Xie noted.