One of the most picturesque flying routes down the eastern U.S. coast is over North Carolina’s spectacular Outer Banks. Pilots making the trip now have an even greater reason to overfly the northern end of the Banks since the Currituck County Regional Airport added lead-free, ethanol free autogas last month. According to Airport Commissioner Ed […]
Aviation Fuel
In defense of autogas
Recently an airport commissioner in North Carolina contacted us regarding his commission’s plans to add autogas as a means to lower the cost of flying and increase overall activity at his airport. A large Shell-branded avgas supplier based in his state refused to provide autogas, but he was able to find a local fuel jobber […]
Lawmkers request fuel fraud repeal
U.S. Representatives Sam Graves (R-Mo.) and John Barrow (D-Ga.) recently put together a letter to Representative Dave Camp (R-Mich.), chairman of the Committee on Ways and Means, requesting his support in repealing a provision known as “fuel fraud” that is part of the final highway reauthorization bill. The letter was signed by 32 members of […]
GA Caucus seeks to close loophole stealing aviation funds
A report at EAA.org is asking all pilots to urge their congressional representatives to support a letter from the House General Aviation Caucus that supports closing a loophole in federal regulations that is moving aviation fuel tax revenue to highway trust funds. The problem arose when some trucking firms allegedly began purchasing jet fuel for […]
The engines of AERO Friedrichshafen
Your blogger is attending the AERO Friedrichshafen show in sunny southern Germany. Among the hundreds of exhibits are many new aircraft engines, some with names like Continental and Lycoming most Americans would recognize, but others that are relatively unknown in the U.S. While a full report will have to wait until next week, one thing […]
Lycoming gets FAA nod to update list of approved fuels
Just weeks after Lycoming Engines announced it would seek approval to operate certain engines on ASTM D7547 UL 91 unleaded avgas, it has received FAA approval to update its listing of approved fuels. Lycoming’s newly available Service Instruction SI-1070R lists 35 engine models approved to operate on ASTM D7547 UL 91 fuel. The models are […]
Autogas expert Harry Zeisloft dies
The sad news of the death of Harry Zeisloft reached us this week. As reported by the EAA, “Harry Zeisloft, who was one of EAA’s longest-serving board members and an integral part of EAA’s effort to create the auto fuel Supplemental Type Certificate (STC), passed away Sunday, April 1, in Mesa, Arizona. He was 93.” […]
UL91 explained
Last month, Lycoming expanded its support for alternative fuels by announcing that it was seeking EASA approval for operation of many of its engines on the unleaded aviation fuel UL91. The company also announced it was planning to approve its new O-233 LSA engine for autogas, a clear response to engines from Rotax, Jabiru, ULPower, […]
ULPower’s new 6-cylinder autogas engines
Belgian aircraft engine maker ULPower recently announced a new line of FADEC-controlled, autogas-burning six-cylinder engines ranging in output from 140-200 hp. According to Robert Helms, general manager of ULPower North America, “The thrust to weight ratio is appealing to the designers of many aircraft. Whether you are focused on short takeoff, high economy, or high […]