Canada airports report avgas shortage
AOPA has confirmed reports of 100LL aviation fuel being unavailable at a number of airports in Canada in connection with a quality-control problem affecting fuel from the only refinery in the country that produces the fuel used by most general aviation aircraft.
Pilots are urged to check notices to airmen to verify the fuel’s availability at their Canadian destinations before departure.
According to the Canadian Owners and Pilots Association, Imperial Oil, the sole Canadian producer of avgas for the Canadian market, reported on Feb. 15 that a quality-control issue concerning the conductivity of the fuel had been discovered on Feb. 13. The producer advised any distributors who received fuel after Dec. 28, 2017, to discontinue sales.
Other Canadian airports were cautioned to test their fuel, regardless of the last fuel shipment’s delivery date. Canada’s aviation fuel is produced by Imperial’s Strathcona refinery in Edmonton, Alberta.
According to Nav Canada’s Flight Information Centre in London, Ontario, notams had been posted Feb. 15 for several airports advising “FUEL 100LL NOT AVBL.”
Imperial Oil was expected to issue an update on the status of fuel production on Feb. 16 or Feb. 19, COPA said.
