The MOSAIC Snag That Left Powered Parachute Manufacturers in Certification Limbo

Powrachute, one of the established names in the powered parachute industry, has filed a petition with the FAA requesting temporary certification relief. The reason: the ASTM International consensus standard that manufacturers must comply with under MOSAIC contains an error, and a corrected version exists but has not yet completed the formal acceptance process. Until it does, Powrachute cannot legally certify new aircraft.

What Is MOSAIC and Why Does It Matter

MOSAIC - the Modernization of Special Airworthiness Certificates - is the FAA’s comprehensive overhaul of the Light Sport Aircraft framework. The original rule, published in 2004, opened a path for lighter, simpler aircraft under a pilot certificate with fewer medical requirements and a lower barrier to entry. But that rule came with strict limits: weight caps, speed caps, and a narrow list of approved configurations.

MOSAIC was designed to modernize all of that - expanding what qualifies as a light sport aircraft, raising the performance envelope, and bringing a much wider range of aircraft into the framework. The rule went final, and manufacturers began planning.

How Light Sport Certification Actually Works

Light sport certification does not follow the traditional FAA type certificate process. A Cessna 172 earns its airworthiness through a full FAA type certificate. Light sport aircraft do not. Instead, manufacturers build to consensus standards published by ASTM International, an independent standards body, and self-certify that their aircraft meets those standards. A compliant aircraft qualifies as a Special Light Sport Aircraft without FAA type certification.

That structure puts ASTM International at the center of the approval chain. If the standard is correct, manufacturers certify to it and deliver aircraft. If the standard has a problem, the entire chain stops.

The Specific Problem Facing Powrachute

The current ASTM standard applicable to powered parachutes under MOSAIC contains an error. A corrected version has been developed, but it has not yet been formally accepted through the ASTM process. That creates an impossible position for manufacturers:

They cannot certify to a standard they know is wrong.
They cannot certify to a corrected standard that does not officially exist yet.
They cannot continue producing new aircraft without some legal acknowledgment from the FAA that the agency understands the situation.

Powrachute’s petition asks for exactly that: a temporary accommodation while the corrected standard works through the ASTM acceptance process.

Why This Matters Beyond Powered Parachutes

The ASTM standards mechanism is not unique to powered parachutes. Every category of Special Light Sport Aircraft relies on the same system - weight-shift control aircraft, powered gliders, lighter-than-air aircraft, and light sport airplanes all live or die by whether the relevant ASTM standard is current, accurate, and accepted.

MOSAIC significantly revised the standards across every category it touched. Each of those updated standards must complete the ASTM process. Manufacturers in other light sport categories are likely watching the powered parachute situation closely, because it previews what can happen when rulemaking outpaces the standards infrastructure that supports it.

What Powered Parachutes Are - and Who Flies Them

A powered parachute is among the simplest forms of powered flight. A paraglider canopy, a small cart with seating for one or two occupants, a small engine, and a propeller. The pilot runs across a field, the canopy inflates, and the aircraft climbs. Typical cruise altitudes are a few hundred feet above the ground. Speeds are slow. The entire platform is built around low-and-slow recreational flying.

There is a committed community of pilots in this segment. For them, the practical implications are immediate: if new aircraft cannot be certified, they cannot be built. Dealers cannot accept deliveries. Buyers who placed orders are waiting. Manufacturers who aligned production timelines with the MOSAIC rollout are now stuck in a gap they did not create.

What Existing Owners Need to Know

If you already own and operate a powered parachute under the light sport framework, your aircraft is not affected. You continue to fly under the rules that were in place when your aircraft was certificated. Nothing about this situation changes the legal status of existing aircraft.

What is in limbo is new production - aircraft that have not yet been built, which would be the first to carry updated certification under MOSAIC.

If you are currently in the market for a new powered parachute, the timeline for MOSAIC-compliant aircraft availability is uncertain as of October 2026. Contact your dealer and the manufacturer directly to understand where they stand in the certification process and what a realistic delivery timeline looks like.

The Path Forward

The resolution is straightforward in concept: the corrected ASTM standard completes its acceptance process, the FAA grants temporary relief to affected manufacturers in the meantime, and everyone transitions to the corrected standard once it is formally accepted.

The question is pace. The FAA’s response to Powrachute’s petition will function as a signal to the broader light sport manufacturing community about how the agency intends to handle standards-timing problems throughout the MOSAIC implementation phase. A slow or difficult response slows not just powered parachute production, but the broader rollout of MOSAIC-compliant aircraft - including the modern, affordable options that new pilots were counting on MOSAIC to deliver.

The FAA deserves recognition for building a light sport framework that uses consensus standards rather than requiring full type certification for every manufacturer. That system has made it possible for a wide range of aircraft to exist in the certificated world. But the accountability for keeping those standards accurate, and for responding quickly when they are not, is real. The light sport ecosystem functions only if the ASTM process keeps pace with the rulemaking it supports.

Source: AVweb

Key Takeaways

Powrachute has petitioned the FAA for temporary certification relief because the required ASTM standard for powered parachutes under MOSAIC contains an error, and the corrected version has not yet been formally accepted.
Light sport aircraft certification relies on ASTM International consensus standards, not FAA type certificates - meaning an error in the standard stops production across an entire category.
Existing powered parachute owners are not affected; only new production aircraft seeking MOSAIC-era certification are in limbo.
Every light sport category touched by MOSAIC faces a similar standards-timing risk, making this situation a preview of a broader implementation challenge.
The FAA’s response will set the tone for how standards-lag issues are handled throughout the MOSAIC rollout.