Swift Fuels has suspended its work activities in the Phase-II Piston Alternative Fuels Initiative (PAFI).
One of two fuels chosen for the FAA testing program — the other one was from Shell — Swift officials say they are now concentrating on a high-octane unleaded avgas replacement that is not part of the PAFI program.
Instead, the company is working privately with the FAA and Original Equipment Manufactures (OEMs) using an alternative path for FAA certification status, which is already in progress, company officials report.
Engine and flight testing of the new unleaded fuel has been on-going for the past months across the US while PAFI testing had been delayed.
Swift Fuels’ D’Acosta and another company employee with one of the company’s fuel trucks.
“The company wants to maintain the momentum that we’ve started,” said Chris D’Acosta, Swift Fuels CEO. “We’re hopeful our new fuel will be accepted by pilots as the ‘best’ fleetwide unleaded avgas alternative to replace 100LL. All our unleaded fuels are premium quality, reliable, intermixable for transition, and low toxicity — with no plug fouling or oil contamination — resulting in longer engine life and lower operating costs. At Swift Fuels, we expect all our high-octane unleaded fuels to be priced commercially competitive with 100LL.”
Swift Fuels is the only company producing an unleaded avgas in the US, company officials said. Swift’s UL94 unleaded avgas serves 110,000 aircraft in the US piston fleet with a “drop-in ready” alternative, they add.
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We expect all our high octane unleaded fuels to be priced ” COMMERCIALLY COMPETITIVE ” with 100LL. Does this mean that we as consumers of avgas will continue to get the shaft while the producers get the gold mine?? That’s all it ever is, green backs, all the time we were told the company’s were looking for a better fuel not hurtful to aircraft engines and good for the environment, hog wash, it was just another way of insulting the consumers intelligence which mean, ” we have always had an alternative for 100LL” we were just looking for a smother way of telling the consumers that the floggings will continue !!! thanks for more of the usual.
So 100LL replacement won’t happen either then…you can’t have just one supplier of a fuel not yet approved. The program is apparently dead.