VFR Challenge from Pilot Workshops—A Fuel’s Errand
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VFR Challenge: A fuel’s errand—what would you on a cross-country trip when you discover no fuel is available at your only planned stop
In this PilotWorkshops VFR Mastery scenario, you’re making a 650nm VFR cross-country from Red Wing, Minnesota (KRGK) to Sheridan, Wyoming (KSHR) for a ski trip. About half way there, at your only planned fuel stop in, you discover the self-serve pump is inoperative. Now, with no other airports within comfortable fuel range, you’ll have to find a way out of this mess. None of your options are very good, and each one adds potential risks or long delays. Let’s jump in and see what you would decide.
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You should have landed with 30 minutes of fuel. Most of us land with 60 minutes. With the assumption you are flying a four seat aircraft one option is mogas.
You have about 10 gallons of 100-LL on board and with a little luck you can score 10 gallons of mogas… Two five gallon red plastic nearly impossible to use gas jugs.
Both major engine manufacturers have memos allowing you to run a 50/50 100-LL/mogas mixture if needed.
This is something I did a few years ago without any negative side effects.
I’m just a student pilot so … be kind. There’s little detail about the W&B for this flight. But, I see just 3 options to the PiC:
– dump as much weight as possible, even a passenger could Uber/Lyft the remainder.
– any equipment can be picked up via carrier for delivery.
– if fuel is within Uber/Lyft range call for ride and pickup
– if no fuel option exists leave the plane and get Uber/Lyft/Rental car to complete travel.
– return for plane same way after pump is repaired.
Call a mobil fuel company and get them bring fuel, call a friend for fuel, siphon the fuel yourself , repair the broken part youself, or takeoff and become a glider.
What a situation we’re in! Since specific aircraft details are not included, I think the only answer is to stick it out at the half way point. We could’ve avoided this mess if we called the FBO at the half way point in the first place! We’ll be hunkered down here until either they fix the self service fuel, or they provide an avgas truck for us! Safety comes first.
Excellent problem, best I have seen.
As I understand this scenarios premise, the pilot took off from Red Wing Minnesota (KRGK) presumably with a flight plan with one intermediary stop for refueling.
Why didn’t the pilot confirm that fuel services were available at that intermediary stop?
That would be a no-brainer in planning.
Let’s assume his intermediary stop was KPIR, roughly 380 nm from Red Wing, MN.
This airport has service for 100LL & Jet-A+. But no self serve only full serve.
So far, this meets the above criteria. The intermediary stop has no self serve available. And the scenario above did not specify that full service was or wasn’t available.
At this point, it’s a trick question. Yes, the SELF serve is unavailable, but did not specify is the FULL service was kaput as well.
But lets also assume, in this scenario, that KPIR full service is also unavailable.
The FBO at that KPIR has multiple methods of contact and/or information:
UNICOM, telephone, website, twitter, facebook, etc. I will not specify the contact info here; however, the pilot had the chance to verify this in flight planning. Additionally, the pilot’s alternatives are KRAP, KBIS, KABR, KFSD, etc.
Each have fuel services contact methods that should have been investigated before even leaving the ground in Red Wing.
Ok, let’s assume, when he contacted the FBO in that KPIR, the FBO reported that fuel services were available. The pilot takes off, secure in the knowledge that fuel will be available at their stop.
But at the moment their wheels touched asphalt at KPIR, the FBO power and backup power to their pumps and/or trucks failed, fulfilling the scenario above.
In the flight planning phase, the pilot should have planned for that. And had alternative flight plans prepared. The pilot did not perform due diligence.
Had the pilot done their homework, they could have chosen the closest alternative, contacted that alternative before leaving KPIR. Then also, before leaving KPIR, contact the second alternative, just in case this pilots luck is “snake-bit”.
Ok.it’s not this pilots day. They find out all alternative airports within their range also have no fuel services.
They shouldn’t have left the ground without proper planning. A ski trip ain’t that important enough to offset the risk.
Proper planning, though, is crucially important.
So they’re stuck at the intermediary airport. That’s a better alternative than forcing the flight.