One year after four fuels were selected for testing as potential replacements for leaded avgas, progress remains steady, according to a report at AOPA.org, which notes that the first phase of testing should be completed later this year. Testing now is concentrated on material compatibility and rig testing, with the second phase of testing — […]
avgas
Keeping firefighters supplied with fuel
EPIC Aviation, a fuel supplier to the general and commercial aviation industries, reports it has dispatched more than 2 million gallons of aviation fuel since the beginning of July to FBOs and fire bases supporting aerial firefighting operations in the Western United States. Aviation fuel and ground-support resources used in aerial firefighting operations have been in […]
JetFuelX launches free aviation fuel price finder
SAN CLEMENTE, Calif. — JetFuelX, led by pilot Jason Talley, has launched a new jet fuel price management tool for aircraft owners and corporate flight departments. Developed by pilots, the program is free and can be used on any mobile device. “JetFuelX was built on a simple principle,” said Talley, founder of the company. “I wanted to […]
Is unleaded avgas coming to an airport near you?
By DEAN BILLING. Perhaps you noticed the announcement that Swift Fuels made at AirVenture 2015, which was also carried by General Aviation News. Swift Fuels has begun distributing 94 MON, unleaded aviation fuel to several airports and has begun a program to distribute it throughout the U.S. Airports currently carrying the new 94 MON unleaded […]
Swift Fuels launches unleaded avgas
Swift Fuels will introduce its unleaded 94 MON avgas at the annual EAA AirVenture Oshkosh July 20-26, at the Wittman Regional Airport in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. Working with avgas producers and distributors, Swift Fuels is making plans to supply unleaded 94 MON avgas to select regions in the United States and Canada. The premium quality unleaded fuel, […]
Good news — and bad — on GA fuels
By DEAN BILLING. As you might expect, there is good news and bad news surrounding aviation fuel. First the good news: A self-serve fuel system has been installed at Nampa, Idaho. (KMAN). An Oregon bill, HB-3193, that “increases license tax on leaded aircraft fuel,” stalled in the Oregon House Committee On Transportation And Economic Development and is […]
The devil is in the details with unleaded avgas
In the 1970s, the automotive world switched from leaded to unleaded fuels and the oil companies did a lot of research on knocking and how to prevent it. One of the big projects involved octane requirement increase (ORI). In this program, cars were rated for octane requirement when new and then every 2,000 miles. The octane […]
Taxing the lead out of 100LL
By DEAN BILLING. California was the first state to attempt to remove the lead from 100LL by lawsuit. Unfortunately, the result of the unsuccessful CEH lawsuit only increased the cost of 100LL in the state. Now, along comes Oregon, which wants to tax the lead out of 100LL. I have a feeling this method will appeal to […]
Testing the octane rating of aviation fuel
A wise man once said, “If you can keep your head when all about you are losing theirs, then you have evidently not grasped the gravity of the situation.” When I first started working at Shell back in the late 1960s, we did a lot of work on octane requirements. Due to the poor correlation […]