Originally published at: Unleaded Avgas Airport Playbook Lands Before Final FAA Plan
June publications from the National Academies put the unleaded fuel transition in the hands of airport operators.
(The National Academies put the unleaded fuel transition in the hands of airport operators.) Really
The FAA with backing from the AOPA has created a 100LL fuel mandate that actually takes the unleaded fuel transition out of the hands of the US airport operators by tell them what fuel they have to sell like it or not. In Europe airport operators are free to give up 100LL without the government taking legal action against them and so some have dropped 100LL completely without government cutting their funds. Normally in Europe they make an alternative unleaded fuel available. Normally it is an auto fuel without ethanol or an ASTM approved UL 91 that most aircraft can us without an STC.
Airport operators have been denied this freedom by the FAA in cooperation with the AOPA in the USA.
The FAA could do a fleet authorization for ASTM approved UL 91 as they had promised they would do several years ago. Anybody that has ever dealt with the FAA knows this government agency is not designed to be helpful and never does anything in a timely manner.
The FAA asked people to respond to the unleaded fuel situation and I did that. Where are the results from that? It seems we’re hearing nothing from them.