AOPA Turbine Pilot Magazine - May 2022 - 67

LEADING THE EFFORT
With its ability to bring together pilots, aircraft owners,
manufacturers, and government, AOPA is at the forefront
of the effort to transition the fleet away from 100LL. Under
the leadership of President and CEO Mark Baker, Senior
Vice President of Government Affairs and Advocacy Jim
Coon, and the advocacy team, AOPA is spearheading this
important initiative.
Q&A with Jim Coon
Q: How is EAGLE different from
previous unleaded efforts, such as
the Piston Aviation Fuels Initiative
(PAFI) process?
A: Unlike the PAFI program, the EAGLE
initiative brings together all stakeholders
from industry and government agencies,
with a focus on obtaining and distributing
a high-octane unleaded fuel as quickly as
possible-and no later than 2030. PAFI was
established to develop testing procedures
and conduct testing of high-octane
unleaded fuel candidates.
Q: Why is it so difficult to move away
from leaded fuel?
A: Lead in aviation gasoline protects engines
from detonation by increasing the fuel's
octane. Detonation can lead to catastrophic
engine failure. An unleaded fuel formula
must have a chemical makeup that provides
detonation protection. GAMI's G100UL is
the first high-octane unleaded avgas to be
FAA-approved via a supplemental type
certificate (STC) for specific makes and
models of aircraft, and other fuel providers,
large and small, continue to work toward a
solution for the entire GA fleet.
Q: Why can't we just use mogas?
A: Substituting mogas was evaluated early on
in the unleaded avgas industry effort, about
30-plus years ago, and it was determined
that many properties important for aviation
safety are not adequately controlled for in
mogas. In some states, regulations don't even
require mogas to meet the existing mogas
specifications. Also, mogas and avgas are
rated on different octane scales; that gives us
more than a 10-octane number gap between
what mogas offers and the required octane
for 70 percent of avgas demand.
Q: GAMI appears to have a viable
unleaded fuel. Why aren't we all just
lining up behind them and pushing
this through faster?
A: AOPA supports all pathways to attaining
an unleaded high-octane aviation gasoline
for the general aviation fleet of nearly
200,000 aircraft. GAMI's G100UL has
STCs for over 600 different types of pistonengine
aircraft, but approval by the FAA
for the entire high-compression engine
fleet is not yet in hand. Beyond having an
approved fuel, the industry has to work
out the logistics of producing the fuel in
volume, as well as transporting, storing,
and dispensing unleaded high-octane
aviation gasoline. The EAGLE effort will
address these issues, as well.
Q: Do you think EAGLE, with its
mix of industry and the FAA, will be
enough to thwart more premature
moves away from avgas like we've
seen in California?
A: The FAA and industry are working
to address this, and it is a high priority.
Some airports are moving unilaterally and
prematurely to ban 100LL, and thereby
creating a safety threat to pilots and
preventing some emergency and rescue
aircraft from staging there. Premature
leaded avgas bans impede efforts to develop
a safe and smart transition to our future
unleaded fuel. We hope that a combination
of wisdom and foresight can reverse these
initiatives while the best and brightest
chemists and engineers in the world work
to develop a viable unleaded fuel solution.
Q: Am I going to have to make
modifications to my airplane?
A: The ultimate goal is an unleaded
avgas that does not require modifications
to aircraft or engines. And it is my
understanding that current candidate fuels
are not expected to require modifications.
Q: Will I have to pay more for an
unleaded fuel?
A: We believe unleaded avgas formulations
will cost the same or slightly more to
manufacture. The price at the pump,
however, is influenced by many factors.
Unleaded fuels will allow more fuel
blenders to compete in the marketplace,
potentially placing downward pressure on
price at the pump, but it is too early to tell
for sure until fuel development is completed
and fuel distribution costs are better known.
AOPA PILOT / April 2
AOPA PILOT / May 2022
67
AOPA Turbine Pilot Magazine - May 2022

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