The GAfuels Blog is written by two private pilots concerned about the future availability of fuels for piston-engine aircraft: Dean Billing, Sisters, Ore., an expert on autogas and ethanol, and Kent Misegades, Cary, N.C., an aerospace engineer and aviation journalist.

The number of signatures on our petition requesting the EPA to prohibit the use of ethanol in Premium gasoline continues its steady rise. Among the nearly 4,000 people who have so far signed it, many are airplane owners who have documented the impact of ethanol contamination of Mogas, the other FAA-approved aviation fuel that can safely and affordably power 70%-80% of all piston engine aircraft, and nearly 100% of a new LSA airplanes. Below are several recent comments that passionately urge our government to preserve an ethanol free fuel for aviation and engines found in millions of other applications. [Read more...]

The GAfuels Blog is written by two private pilots concerned about the future availability of fuels for piston-engine aircraft: Dean Billing, Sisters, Ore., an expert on autogas and ethanol, and Kent Misegades, Cary, N.C., an aerospace engineer and aviation journalist.

According to a recent article in the Wall Street Journal, “Ethanol on the Run”, a broad bipartisan coalition of lawmakers has formed to end subsidies and other forms of support for ethanol. Could this be the beginning of the end of the mandated use of ethanol in our fuels, and with it a greater supply of ethanol-free fuel, sorely needed in aviation as a low-cost alternative to leaded avgas?

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The GAfuels Blog is written by two private pilots concerned about the future availability of fuels for piston-engine aircraft: Dean Billing, Sisters, Ore., an expert on autogas and ethanol, and Kent Misegades, Cary, N.C., an aerospace engineer and aviation journalist.

You know that your political agenda is in trouble when the Tea Party movement agrees with MoveOn, and conservative Senator Jim DeMint (R-S.C.) agrees with former Vice President and environmental activist Al Gore. This is the situation that the ethanol lobby now faces in Washington, with the 45 cent a gallon ethanol credit set to expire at the end of the year.

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The GAfuels Blog is written by two private pilots concerned about the future availability of fuels for piston-engine aircraft: Dean Billing, Sisters, Ore., an expert on autogas and ethanol, and Kent Misegades, Cary, N.C., an aerospace engineer and aviation journalist.

One unleaded aviation fuel that gets little press coverage is UL 91, approved by ASTM in June 2008 at the request of the U.S. Department of Defense as a fuel for UAVs.  Since then, the military has shifted its focus to powerplants using “heavy” kerosene-based fuels such as diesel and JP-8. UL 91 is not currently in production. As an indication of the growing popularity of Swedish Hjelmco Oil’s 91/96 UL and 91/98 UL unleaded fuels, the ASTM is now considering the change of UL 91’s designation to NLA (Non-Leaded Avgas). It remains to be seen however, if any company produces it for military or civilian purposes.

The GAfuels Blog is written by two private pilots concerned about the future availability of fuels for piston-engine aircraft: Dean Billing, Sisters, Ore., an expert on autogas and ethanol, and Kent Misegades, Cary, N.C., an aerospace engineer and aviation journalist.

In the rapidly-developing debate over future aviation fuels, Mogas is gaining in popularity, as seen in the hundreds of comments on our petition to the EPA to ban the use of ethanol in Premium (91 AKI octane) gasoline. Now it seems that the EPA itself and even former Vice President Al Gore are having second thoughts about ethanol’s use as a fuel.

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The GAfuels Blog is written by two private pilots concerned about the future availability of fuels for piston-engine aircraft: Dean Billing, Sisters, Ore., an expert on autogas and ethanol, and Kent Misegades, Cary, N.C., an aerospace engineer and aviation journalist.

The aviation alphabets and pilots need to understand something about ethanol-blended gasoline and blending laws:  Although ethanol will be blended into every drop of gasoline by the end of 2011 or early 2012, that’s not the problem! That is the unintended consequence of a deeply flawed federal Renewable Fuel Standard mandated deep inside a huge act called EISA 2007.  There is a table in the RFS section that is driving the ethanol blending madness and it is cast in stone.

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The GAfuels Blog is written by two private pilots concerned about the future availability of fuels for piston-engine aircraft: Dean Billing, Sisters, Ore., an expert on autogas and ethanol, and Kent Misegades, Cary, N.C., an aerospace engineer and aviation journalist.

The process of separating ethanol out of unleaded auto fuel is a much discussed topic on many aviation forums, blogs and media articles.  In fact, there are now commercial enterprises that are offering ethanol “washers” so you can remove ethanol from gasoline.  It does strike me as rather odd that so many people spend so much effort on the process, and try to accommodate ethanol blended gasoline in their lives when they could be putting that effort and energy into getting ethanol blending prohibited in premium unleaded gasoline so it would be widely available for everyone who needs it … and there are an awful lot of people who need it. [Read more...]

The GAfuels Blog is written by two private pilots concerned about the future availability of fuels for piston-engine aircraft: Dean Billing, Sisters, Ore., an expert on autogas and ethanol, and Kent Misegades, Cary, N.C., an aerospace engineer and aviation journalist.

Few proposals from the EPA have generated broader opposition than increasing the allowable limit on ethanol blended gasoline to 15%, commonly known as E15. But this didn’t prevent the EPA in October from approving E15 for use in vehicles built since 2007. As many opponents predicted, the lawsuits have now begun, [Read more...]