When everyone is eager to get moving when flying home for the holidays, it is understandable that people become forgetful. Scarves are left behind along with toothbrushes, and perhaps you call upon a helpful neighbor to bring the packages arriving inside. But one thing that cannot be rushed this season is safety.
At Mira Vista, Aviation safety is always the top priority. While flight schedules and departures are flexible, safety is not. Our pilots have a strict set of checklist items to complete and duplicate before each flight. One specific thing is fueling. Before departure, pilots consider multiple factors including but not limited to the trip duration and runway length. These particular items relate to the quantity of fuel taken before departure that ensures a safe landing with no unnecessary stops with a mindset of economics.
Fuel is a significant resource for anyone traveling, so it’s easy to understand the concept of need and distance. Another situation we often consider secondary thought of only in our peripheral mind is fuel type. If you drive a diesel car, unleaded can be lethal to the vehicle. If the wrong fuel is used in your aircraft, the outcome will be fatal to all onboard.
All aircraft are marked, like cars, with what fuel type is to be used when fueling. The two most common variations of fuel are AVGAS and Jet Fuel. Each model of aircraft may only use one type, just like diesel and unleaded vehicles, there are some variations of aircraft, such as the DA-40, where one version uses AVGAS while the other takes Jet Fuel. In this situation, think of how your Porsche Cayenne may have been a diesel while your neighbors may be a 95 Premium Cayenne.
When grounds crews are fueling over 100 aircraft a day, an error can be understandable. They rely on their training to ensure they know what type and model of aircraft receive which kind of fuel, how to find the fuel type on the jet, and of course, they check with the pilots. Mira Vista pilots assist and or present upon the fueling of each aircraft. Pilots check the fuel type by looking at the color of fuel.
AVGAS comes in a few colors, including red, purple, green, or blue, while Jet Fuel is colorless or straw-colored. Safety in flight mandates that every operation checks the fuel type, quality, and quantity after refueling and before every flight. The Pilot-in-Command checks the quality by using a drain on the fuel tank to perform tests such as the Clear and Bright Test, White Bucket Test, and API Gravity Test.
While a speedy delivery of loved ones is essential, safety always comes first. This holiday season pick a charter company that not only allows you to decide when and where you’re going but one that won’t prohibit your travel by avoidable and possibly tragic mistakes. The holidays are meant to be merry and bright, not scary due to flight.