Plain English Meaning
An aircraft that comes from the factory already built and ready to be flown, rather than one the owner has to put together from a kit.
Full Definition
A category of light-sport aircraft that is delivered fully assembled by the manufacturer and is airworthy at the time of sale, requiring no kit-building or major assembly by the buyer before it can be flown.
Context Anchor
Seen in discussions of light-sport aircraft, especially when comparing factory-built aircraft with aircraft that the owner must assemble.
Why Pilots Care
Ready-to-fly LSAs fall under specific certification rules (Special LSA category) and have different maintenance, inspection, and operational requirements than kit-built or experimental aircraft. Knowing which category an aircraft falls into affects who can legally maintain it and what operations are permitted.
Intuition Check
Ready-to-fly does not mean ready to take off this second. In this FAA context, it means delivered as a complete aircraft, with legal and safety checks still required before flight.
Example Sentence 1
She bought a ready-to-fly light-sport aircraft so she could start training without spending months assembling a kit.
Example Sentence 2
Unlike experimental kits, ready-to-fly models arrive with all systems installed, inspected, and documented by the manufacturer.