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Two publications — GA News’ “The Pulse” and AvWeb reported on a letter from Congressman Henry Waxman (D-CA) urging FAA to help airports encourage auto gas supply. While his reasoning has a political quality (no surprise in this election-charged atmosphere), the point for LSA enthusiasts is that this could help increase availability of Mogas at airports. Since the Rotax and Jabiru engines that power the vast majority of LSA actually prefer automotive fuel as experts say it burns cleaner and provides a more efficient use of fuel — plus it costs significantly less! — congressional pressure on FAA could be a game changer.
The downside is that many in aviation’s more influential ranks are focused on withering supplies of 100LL Avgas and for unexplained reasons, some continue to resist supplying Mogas at airports. Waxman’s letter refers to a report by FAA’s Unleaded Avgas Transition Aviation Rulemaking Committee report released in February 2012.

OK, even to me it seems rather early to be writing about Sebring 2013. (I’m a huge fan, having attended all eight Expos.) The event is months away and summer just arrived so why are we thinking about next winter? Truth be told, you don’t get anywhere in the airshow biz without planning months, even years, in the future. So, to their credit, organizers of the Sebring U.S. Sport Aviation Expo — a mouthful most of us just abbreviate as “Sebring LSA Expo” — are laying plans for the ninth Expo well in advance.
*** Today, those organizers, lead by last year’s new boss, Jana Filip, sent out a new grounds layout. I’ll be headed down to Sebring on Monday with FlightTime Radio entrepreneur Milford Shirley in his Cherokee for a meeting with the Sebring honchos and folks like Jacob Peed from Aviators Hot Line plus Bahamas guru and Breezer importer, MikeZ.

After a whole week of low clouds and drizzly rain, the weather cleared as if a curtain was lifted across the stage of the sky. I had time for an evening flight before official sunset. Hurrying to the airfield I arrived just in time to see a giant rainbow downwind. I took this as a good omen. *** My Evans VP-1, G-BIFO (Biffo) is based close to my house and is always at the front of hangar, so just twenty minutes after I leave home we’re both standing outside, bathed in the evening sunlight. As we usually fly together at least twice every week Biffo looks at me almost accusingly, as if to say “Where’ve you been?” *** So far, I’ve been rushing, but as I slip the chocks in front of the wheels, I deliberately slow things down. I check the fuel and oil, do a careful preflight, and complete the time-honoured ritual of pumping the primer, setting the choke, sucking in and selecting the mags on.

Unless you’ve avoided every aviation magazine or website, you’re no doubt aware of the push by big aviation organizations to address future availability of 100 low-lead avgas. We wish the alphabet groups the best in arranging a replacement fuel or another solution for those operating high performance aircraft. But one solution does not fit all. Why? *** First is the often-quoted statistic that 70-80% of all “legacy” airplanes can use 91-octane and preferably zero ethanol (“E0”) mogas. No question that Light-Sport Aircraft can almost universally use E0 mogas and in fact, Rotax and Jabiru powerplants prefer premium unleaded (the 80-hp Rotax 912 can even use 87-octane satisfactorily for still greater savings). Only a modest percentage of U.S. aircraft must have high octane. • Secondly, 100LL is now more expensive and any replacement will share this quality. Mogas can be $1-2 or more less per gallon. • Thirdly, airplanes like LSA and those many older GA airplanes are not the only ones who can benefit from wider availability of E0 mogas.

Most aviators are aware that 100 Low-Lead AvGas (100LL) has a cloudy future due to the vanishingly small percentage of all motor vehicle fuel it represents. Most readers of SPLOG also know that the vast majority of Light-Sport Aircraft can use — indeed prefer — automobile gasoline, often abbreviated as mogas. What most pilots do not seem to realize yet is that a far larger market of vehicle enthusiasts stand with sport aviators in a preference for zero ethanol fuel, often stated as “E0 (that’s E-zero) mogas.” *** To expand availability of E0 mogas at airports and to lock arms with boaters, motorcyclists, and millions of others who want the E0 go-juice, a new club has formed to mobilize support. Welcome to a club you never knew you should join: the Aviation Fuel Club (AFC). This group is promoting the idea of “sport fuel,” which deliberately avoids “aviation” or “aircraft” as a vastly larger market exists with which to share this fuel.

Kent Misegades writes, “For the past several years my colleagues and I have been waging a campaign to ban the use of ethanol in premium gasoline, thus preserving a safe, affordable, unleaded fuel for sport aviation as well as the millions of Americans who need “E0″ for their boats, snowmobiles, power tools, classic cars & bikes, among others.” Kent continues, “Thanks to vintage BMW owner Sam Hokin, his Pure-Gas.org list helps us find the fuel. We recently posted a petition that will be sent to the EPA administrator, Ms. Lisa Jackson, urging action on the issue. *** “The petition has been getting widespread attention among sport aviators, who have left comments such as these:” • (#2,390) The industry of Light-Sport Aircraft has been severely impacted by ethanol fuel. It dissolves our gas tanks, fuel lines, and gaskets causing in-flight engine failures, aircraft mishaps, and even death. We desperately need a local source of ethanol free gasoline.

During my recent appearance on the Powered Sport Flying (Internet) Radio Show, I said I remained amazed that although the western U.S. has a large share of all pilots and airplanes in the country, no western airshow seems to have taken off the way Sun ‘n Fun or AirVenture has. True enough, no west-of-the-Mississippi event comes close in size to the eastern shows, but my comments weren’t fair to steady work by organizers of Copperstate, an event with a 37-year history (nor to the even-larger and older Arlington show or the Golden West event.) These western shows may not be huge, but they reveal an aviation passion. *** This year’s Copperstate will be held in Casa Grande, Arizona — just south of Phoenix — from Thursday, October 21st through Saturday, October 23rd. The 2009 edition reported “more than 6,500 attendees.” I spoke with new LSA enthusiast Steve Bass, Copperstate Fly-In Vice President and Light Sport & Ultralight Committee Chairman.