The Transition to Unleaded Fuel

Pia Bergqvist

Tuesday, July 03, 2012 at 06:24 PM ET

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Key Takeaways:

The article questions the FAA's decision to develop a new unleaded avgas, highlighting that Hjelmco 91/96 UL, a proven unleaded aviation fuel, has been widely used in Europe for over three decades.
Hjelmco 91/96 UL offers significant benefits, including dramatically lower emissions, improved engine performance, cost competitiveness with 100LL, and compatibility with a large majority of general aviation aircraft.
Despite complying with U.S. standards (ASTM 910), receiving approvals from major engine manufacturers and EASA, and its extensive operational history, this existing unleaded fuel has not been approved for use in the U.S., prompting the author to question why a new solution is being pursued.

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Last week, the FAA issued a report on its plan to replace 100LL with an unleaded alternative. The goal of the new Unleaded Avgas Transition Aviation Rulemaking Committee is to develop a entirely new fuel to replace 100LL. After attending a presentation at Santa Monica’s Museum of Flying this weekend, I’m wondering why.

The presentation was held by Lars Hjelmberg, owner of Hjelmco Oil – a company from Sweden that has been producing unleaded aviation fuels for more than three decades. The most widely distributed version, 91/96 UL, has been available since 1991. Since then, millions of flight hours have been flown in many different types of airplanes using this fuel, according to Hjelmberg. 91/96 UL is available today at more than 70 different airports in Sweden.