Ethanol in fuel

Aircraft owners are advised to ensure that they are using the correct fuel as directed by the type certificate holder.

As previously reported, the Government has mandated that all regular unleaded petrol will increase ethanol content up to 10%. This change will result in reduced CO2 emissions. While the car industry is prepared for the change to ‘E10’, many aircraft that are fuelled by Mogas have the potential to suffer long term damage to their components and fuel lines from the increased ethanol content. Therefore unless otherwise directed by the aircraft type certificate holder, E10 is currently not recommended for use in aircraft that are permitted to use Mogas. E5 petrol (with up to 5% ethanol content) in the ‘super’ grade (97+ octane) remains available at many filling stations. Please make sure you check the label.