Is the 400 lb. useful load pilots and ballast?
See pages 14, 15 and 17 of the 2008 rules. PAYLOAD required is 200 lb per credited seat. (e.g. 400 lb for a 2 seat aircraft.) This includes the seat occupant (pilot or passenger) + ballast. It does NOT include fuel. Fuel is not PAYLOAD. Fuel is part of USEFUL load. Ballast may be used to take the place of passengers, as needed, at the discretion of the team. However, flight operations are expedited by having real live passengers fulfill the payload requirements. CAFE provides ballast in the form of sandbags and other dense containers, but will not provide passengers. If a 4-seat PAV cannot legally within FARs carry 200 lb per seat, (800 lb payload), but can carry say 750 lb payload, then it must be scored as having 3 seats and need only carry 3 x 200 = 600 lb payload in the competition. This affects its required MPGe in the Green Prize (see tables in rules Appendix).
