Warbird Information Exchange

We have a gas station near us here in MA that has a pump for "off-road" diesel. With the way fuel prices are now, it is only $.50-.75 cheaper than the "on-road" fuel. We have several large tractors here for mowing that we can run the "off-road" fuel in. It stains the inside of the tanks and the inside of the fuel caps. There is no question when you have been running the "off-road" fuel. I would not want that stuff anywhere near an aircraft that I was flying in.

A few months back, I recall reading an article somewhere about the USAF having successful test flights of an F-15 running on a blend of half jet fuel and half biojet. I wonder if Randy has any info on this?

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Dean Hemphill, K5DH
Port Charlotte, Florida

The first USAF aircraft test was in a B-52, only some of the eight engines ran on it. They took it all the way with the F-15.

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"You cannot invade the mainland United States. There would be a rifle behind each blade of grass..."
Admiral Isoruku Yamamoto

Hmm dyed fuel etc. So what this tells me, is if just for argument sake, say there was just invented an engine slash engine system that would get 2,000 miles to the gallon, someone would be, ah, not so happy. Because the greatly reduced fuel requirement, would be far more devistating to the amount of tax than using ag fuel on road would ever be.
And this is one of the reasons fuel prices will continue to go through the roof, as fuel economy of engines gets better, ie less fuel sold, the more the tax will be on the fuel. How much tax did they put on fuel in say the early 60's, I remember gas wars of 25 cents per gallon back then, and my dad would drive miles for the lowest price he could find. Oh a gas war is a term used in those days when gas stations or companys would try to beat out the other guy by lowering the price of gasoline.

I've told friends for years that bio fuel/corn gas will only become important and a front burner issue when CHEVRON figures out a way to make a buck off of drilling holes in the corn patch.

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Don't make me go get my flying monkeys-

You figured it out!!! The morons that run our guvment with the help of the EPA/Greens/do-gooders/Algores/Greenwoods/etc. have had to raise the water rates due to less water being used so less tax base, over-regulate companies and run them out of this country, thus a smaller tax base, so lets raise the taxes on the workers, etc., etc......

You mention gas wars now, and people look at you funny like! I remember some $.19 gas in 1972, wow!

.......and that was after the gas was pumped and at least the windshield was cleaned, followed by 'do you want a glass or a steak knife?' and of course, 46 feet of Green Stamps (or Blue Chip Stamps in California) all done by an actual employee of the station in between doing oil changes and tire replacements and lube jobs.

Now it's the oil company that gives every customer a free lube job with every fill-up

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Don't make me go get my flying monkeys-

Dunno about the pos/neg of diesel in jets, but in my unit in Haiti we were instructed to use JP-8 in our HUMVEES.....on return to Planet Drum, it was discovered that all that had used it had cracked heads...

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Bob

Hee, hee, I forgot about the windshield cleaning and oil checks, I did that for a couple of years out of high school.

YEP! $5 of ENCO EXTRA would fill up my '67 COUGAR and let me exercise the 390 and top loader 4 speed all weekend-

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Don't make me go get my flying monkeys-

A year or two later I was pumping Avgas at $.65/gal for 80 octane and $.71/gal for 100 octane (green). The FBO I worked at had a Shell Oil Aviation booklet listing it's aviation products, I should have kept it, 80/87(red), 91/96(blue), 100/130(green), 108/135(brown), and 115/145 (purple) octane fuel.

I remember back in the 60s seeing 91/96 octane at a airport gas pump, but don't remember the price.