What airports have unleaded fuel?

Has anyone ever made a list of airports that have unleaded fuel available?

Go to airnav and do a search:

http://airnav.com/fuel

Select 'Mogas' for the fuel search results desired.

It is important to make sure that when filling up that the fuel pump or tank next to the pump has a 91 octane sticker on it. Mogas does not nesseccarly mean 91 octane. A lot of times it mean 87 octane which is a no no for a Rotax 912. On the web links like Airnav they don't say which octane is available next to the word Mogas.

Jetguy said:

It is important to make sure that when filling up that the fuel pump or tank next to the pump has a 91 octane sticker on it. Mogas does not nesseccarly mean 91 octane. A lot of times it mean 87 octane which is a no no for a Rotax 912. On the web links like Airnav they don't say which octane is available next to the word Mogas.

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As John says, you have to watch the octane. I used to carry octane booster with me when I travelled. However, I just gave up and I use 100 LL with Decalin instead. Easier, no worries, and approved by Rotax. At home, I burn Shell 93 E10, but on the road, I just use 100 LL and change the oil more often.

f1rocket said:

As John says, you have to watch the octane. I used to carry octane booster with me when I travelled. However, I just gave up and I use 100 LL with Decalin instead. Easier, no worries, and approved by Rotax. At home, I burn Shell 93 E10, but on the road, I just use 100 LL and change the oil more often.

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Several times I've made specific fuel stops just to get mogas, only to find out that the pump has 87 octane. Pretty much forget that now and use 100LL + decalin when on long cross country trips.

I've found a couple of airports next to truck stops where you can easily walk less than 100 feet to the bpumps with a 5 gal can and gas up: Chiriaco Summit, CA (L77) and Grand Canyon Caverns, AZ (L37). I don't think the aviation databases list the airports unless the Mogas is provided through a business on the field.

PilotBrent said:

Several times I've made specific fuel stops just to get mogas, only to find out that the pump has 87 octane. Pretty much forget that now and use 100LL + decalin when on long cross country trips.

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I am curious about Decalin. Where do you get it, what's the cost and how do you measure the right quantity to add to your fuel tank after filling with Avgas?

I buy mine from California Power Systems. My bottle is about a quart size and after 4 years and 450 hours I have almost 2/3 left. Can't remember what it cost.

WingedFrog said:

I am curious about Decalin. Where do you get it, what's the cost and how do you measure the right quantity to add to your fuel tank after filling with Avgas?

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I buy it from Aircraft Spruce. I carry it and a small measuring shot glass in a chemical resistant bag behind the passenger seat. It's easy to reach in, pour the right amount into the glass, and pour it in the tank before filling up. I bought the measuring glass at a housewares store like Bed Bath and Beyond.

Aircraft Spruce also has it. IIRC, 1 oz per 10 gallons of 100LL.

The Decalin container has a built-in proportioning device that gives you the correct amount of Decalin for the quantity of fuel you have added. Works well.

Thanks guys for the info, although I don't use a lot of Avgas when around my home airport, on a long trip Decalin will help alleviate the lead damage on the engine (I hope, although like for any "medication" Decalin may come with side effects!). Rotax is recommending a complete inspection and cleaning of the gear box every 600 hours when using 100% Avgas. I wonder if using Decalin will result in avoiding this constraint? Has Rotax made any statement about this when approving use of Decalin?

I think you'll find that the basis of the 600 hr inspection is maintaining the overload clutch functionality. Since the clutch is there to protect the crankshaft in a prop strike I always thought the expense and hassle of the 600 hr test and inspection was not worth it. After all there is no guarantee the crankshaft wouldn't get trashed anyway in a prop strike. I'd like to get the "Collective's" view on this.

We used 100LL a few times in our 914 powered Europa and noted lots of build up in the oil tank. That experience made us try to avoid 100LL when at all possible. In the last 300 hours, we have not used 100LL at all. The websites noted (Airnav and Flyunleaded) are both good. Flyunleaded is now showing where Swift 94M fuel is available which is a perfect fuel for Rotax 9xx engines. Lockwood is using it in their training fleet and think it's great. Right now it is just 6 locations. Swift tells us they are working to get listed in Airnav.

When we plan a cross country trip, we use SkyCharts (any of the planning software will work) to see where our route will take us. We know what our range is so we look for fuel stops using the above websites. If we have to go a little out of our way, we will. Not only do we look for fuel availability, we read the comments and look for positive notes. We always call a day or so ahead to make sure the fuel stop has mogas and what the octane is.

If we can?t find fuel, we carry two 5 gal fuel bags ( http://www.airframesalaska.com/5-2gal-Liquid-Containment-Bag-p/5.2bag.htm ). They work well but be sure there is an o ring under the cap (some came without the o ring). They will smell a little of gas so store them in a giant zip lock bag available at Target, Walmart etc. We then look for airports where we will need gas that are located close to a town or major highway. From Airnav is is easy to use Google map to actually look at the airport and see how close a gas station is located. Airnav will also tell you if a crew or convenience car is available. If so, we telephone and make sure and that becomes a fuel stop. We have found that when you explain why you want auto gas, the FBO is understanding and has no problem letting you use the car. When you return the car be sure to leave $5 or $10 for the use of it.

Hope this helps.

Jim Butcher

Thanks for posting the alternative to plastic jerry cans Jim http://www.airframesalaska.com/5-2gal-Liquid-Containment-Bag-p/5.2bag.htm have you ever tried refueling from those flexible cans when it's windy? Are you pouring from them or using syphons?

Pure-gas.org should show location and a reasonably accurate octane, plus a phone number if you need to call ahead and check availabilty and octane.

Watch out for winter blend now that it is spring switchover.

Might help find gas near an airport. Collapsible jerry cans are expensive, but an option, if desired.

Vlad,

We carry a Mr. Funnel when we travel, since we don't trust fuel anywhere! Using that, we've not had problems with wind. We pour directly from the bag into the funnel - it's actually quite easy since there are handles on the side and the bottom of the bag. With the funnel, we don't use the spout that comes with the bag (leave the spout at home to save weight!). Having said all that, the spout would probably work well and its small enough that it would fit into the filler of an RV.

The bag will expand and hold more than 5 gallons - we usually fit about 6 gallons in each bag.

Use the bags like a temporary gas can. We had a friend who left fuel in one under his Europa during the day at SNF and returned to find the seam split. Obviously with no vent, the pressure built during the day


Jim

Swift UL94 - Now in New England.

Falmouth Airpark (5B6) Cape Cod, Massachusetts now has Swift UL94 Aviation fuel.
This is good for Rotax powered RV-12's.
A list of the aero engines approved for UL94 can be found on the Swift website: https://swiftfuels.com/