Hampton, NH Airport has Autogas

Just south of historic Portsmouth, NH lies the Hampton Airfield (7B3), where AFC members will find lead-free, ethanol-free autogas in addition to avgas. According to airport officials, maintaining a supplier has not been a problem, and the fuel is sold to pilots as well as non pilots for classic cars, power tools, boats, etc. bringing in additional fuel revenue. When you plan your next flight along the spectacular New England coast,consider a stop at Hampton Airfield, where autogas is currently selling for $4.70/gallon.

Lebanon, OR autogas sales strong

Larry Knox, FBO manager of the Lebanon State, OR Airport (S30) sent the following comments recently on the importance of autogas sales: "During the past year (2011) we have established a very dependable fuel source (92 Octane) here in Oregon, a state that mandated E10 in 2008. Thanks to AFC Director Dean Billing we were able to establish legislation that allowed us to use ethanol-free fuel for off-road vehicles. Later laws were changed to allow anyone to burn it if you can find it. In both 2010 and 2011 we sold approximately equal volumes of avgas and autogas through the year. Autogas is the lifeline of our business and though we had a little problem with our avgas supplier in the beginning, they have accepted the fact that autogas sales have no effect on them at all. Small airports like ours that can not sell Jet-A ought to establish autogas as a second fuel." Thanks, Larry!

Fracking, Bakken, Marcellus and GA

Some of the best energy news in recent years is the discovery of massive oil and gas reserves in the Bakken and Marcellus fields, among others. Thanks to advances in horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing (fracking), deposits once thought unprofitable have now created an economic boom in Montana, North Dakota, Pennsylvania and other places where it is being used. In the long term, this can only lead to greater reserves, lower world prices for crude oil and lower prices for aviation fuel. In the short term however, airport managers in these regions are reporting brisk business. Heather Blokzyl, Manager of the Bradford County (PA) Airport (N27) in Towanda, recently reported “The Marcellus gas fields have been great for my airport, especially fuel sales. We see many corporate aircraft from Texas, Arkansas, and Oklahoma, for instance King Airs and Pilatus PC-12s. Helicopters are also used frequently to move people from site to site. For every major project, 100 companies are involved, and many have their own aircraft. We are now expanding our airport.”  Congratulations, Heather!

Once again, the unique ability of general aviation to support industry is proving itself. Our airports will play a key role in opening up even more shale and sand deposits that are found across the country, as this DOE/EIA map shows.  It will be interesting to watch how this large new domestic supply of oil and gas will impact the price we pay for fossil fuels in the coming years. Congratulations, Heather!
 

Mississippi Senator seeks to require Ethanol-free Premium

Mississippi State Senator Michael Watson recently introduced Senate Bill 2137, “An act to require retail dealers and distributors of gasoline to offer for sale or use nonethanol-blended unleaded premium grade gasoline.” When asked for his motivation, the Senator from Pascagula, on Mississippi’s Gulf coast, replied: “Being from the coast, I continue to hear about my constituents having to spend money repairing their boats, lawn mowers, weed eaters, etc.  I’d heard several folks talking about the consequences of ethanol and decided to do a little digging, which ultimately lead to my drafting of this bill.” For more on this important effort, see this link.

Aviation Fuel Update online

AFC Director Kent Misegades recently presented an update on aviation fuels to the North Carolina Airports Association.  A PDF of his notes may be found at this link. Included are the latest trends in fuel sales, status of efforts to find an unleaded replacement for 100LL and images of AFC sponsor U-Fuel's new 'Sport Fuel' station.

AVIATION FUELS 101 - Recent news from GAfuels

Two AFC Directors, Dean Billing of Sisters, OR and Kent Misegades of Cary, NC, co-author the GAfuels blog at General Aviation News. Below are links to some of their recent postings on issues related to aviation fuels.

Fracking, Bakken, Marcellus and GA, February 9th, 2012

Mississippi Senator seeks to require ethanol-free gasoline, January 31st, 2012

Why can’t I find ethanol-free fuel?, January 10th, 2012

UAT-ARC: No drop-in replacement for 100LL, January 4th, 2012

The Valve Seat Recession Conundrum, January 3rd, 2012