I did marketing materials for several LSA (Light Sport Aircraft) manufacturers or importers, and was bartering with one of them to get licensed when the economy blew all to heck in 2008. Many of them are fine little airplanes, very stable, very solid, no problems at all, to the point that some are actually preferred for flight instruction.
The one I’ve flown many times is the Allegro 2000 from FantasyAir, and one of the primary markets was just that. It’s based upon a Czech design and was originally imported from there but is now made in USA. Very affordable as such things go, $60k or so well equipped and ready to fly or at least it was when I was pursuing it.
This Zodiac 610 is unfamiliar to me. Good looking plane, but the lexan “bubble” canopy appears to have been the culprit in this tragedy, it blew off in midflight and the trainee was not buckled in. From a quick search, it’s a Light Sport Kit meaning it was purchased as a kit, not a finished plane.
Somebody’s facing a lawsuit, imho.
Up here in Alaska we have very few roads, plenty of rivers but most cannot be used because of the seasons, floods or being frozen.
In a real SHTF scenario an ATV or snowmachine is what most people would have to use to bug out with, but now I am getting an idea that an ultralight would do a better job.
We have airfields EVERYWHERE up here, and when I moved here in 1992 I took flying lessons but was diverted and finally stopped.
I am going to research more about range on these and payloads.