Unleaded Fuel

Joseph E. (Jeb) Burnside

Wednesday, April 20, 2022 at 07:00 PM ET

Verified

Key Takeaways:

A significant portion (over 65%) of privately owned, single-engine piston aircraft can utilize more affordable mogas via an STC, leading to substantial savings in fuel and reduced lead-related engine maintenance.
Monitoring cabin carbon monoxide (CO) levels is crucial; sustained readings of 10 PPM require investigation, while 35 PPM or rapidly rising levels necessitate an emergency landing and pilot oxygen use.
The application of cold temperature altimeter corrections during instrument approaches is a complex and often misunderstood topic, requiring thorough pilot understanding of specific segments and integrated flight deck implementations.

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Thank you for Jeb Burnside’s “Follow the Money” commentary in the April 2022 issue. I’d like to highlight another aspect of the leaded-avgas issue that aviation’s “alphabet soup” hasn’t called much attention to.

According to the EAA’s own hardcopy STC materials (but not emphasized on the EAA or AOPA web sites), “more than 65 percent of the privately owned, single-engine, piston fleet of aircraft in the United States still utilize 80 octane rated gasoline.”