Mo gas availability for cross country ferry flight in Canada

[I-Fly-Low]

Planning a ferry flight later this summer where I'll be taking my newly purchased aircraft back home to Quebec from the Calgary area.

Lacking experience in that department so I'm calling on fellow pilots to get some insight on mo gas availability across the country. (Rotax 912)

Planning to take the southern route through Medecine Hat, Brandon, Winnipeg, Dryden, get close to Thunder Bay before heading up north east towards Marathon and then Timmins or Rouyn...

Any info or tips is more than welcomed. Mo gas avail., airport with things to eat on site, hotels close by, tie downs or free hangar spaces... things of that nature.

I plan for 2-4hrs legs in the morning, and another 2-4 hrs later in the afternoon each day.

Thx!

[200hr Wonder]

A current CFS will indicate what sort of fuel is available in the services section. Have a great flight.

[PilotDAR]

You should expect poor availability of Mogas at airports. For those which do have it, it might not be "publicly" available. The large oil companies generally have clauses in their contracts with airport operators that their Avgas is sold, and nothing else. This may be for several reasons, but economics certainly is a factor.

My 150 lives on Mogas, here at home, but when I travel, it gets 100LL. At present, there is little practical way around it. If you value your time, and travel opportunity, cabbing jerry cans of Mogas back to the airport is not worth the effort. If you do find the small aerodromes which do have Mogas, they may not be eager to sell it, as it is difficult enough to get it delivered there, there is little economic incentive to sell it. And a perception of liability, if something goes wrong with its use.

I pre ordered a 208 liter drum of Avgas during an arctic trip last summer ($1300). The drum was refinery sealed, and taken to the beach where my plane was. I was offered the use of a hand pump, and told I was on my own - for liability reasons. While my host filled up his 185 right beside me with an electric pump! I can't blame him though...

[Posthumane]

Not sure which aerodrome you're flying out of but Winters Aire Park near Indus (just SE of Calgary) sells MoGas, so that'll get you through the first leg. There are operators in Medicine Hat which use MoGas in large quantities but they generally don't resell it. It may be possible to sweet talk them into it but I think you'd be stuck with the AvGas at Integra Air. If you let me know when you plan to come through Med Hat I may be at the airport and could help you get a couple jerry's worth of gas from a local station.

[AirFrame]

I am slowly getting reports of Mogas fuel prices on 100ll.ca. So the availability and popularity is growing, albeit slowly.

If you make the trip, please send fuel price reports!

[Woxof38]

I did a quick search for MG-1 in CFS
CYXX Abbotsford, BC
CAT1 Atwood/Coghlin, ON
CJD3 Birch Hills, SK
CKH3 Debden, SK
CFY4 Indus/Winters Aire Park, AB
CYBU Nipawin, SK
CKV4 Obre Lake/North of Sixy NT
CYTA Pembroke, ON
CJZ2 Portage La Prairie (North) MB

and for different spelling
I did a quick search for MOGAS in CFS
CLC4 Loon Creek Airfield, SK
CSF7 Ottawa, Casselman, ON
CGB3 Picton (Greenbush), ON
CLV2 Stayner, ON

[Cap'n Tripps]

CYTA is Pembroke, Ontario, not BC.

[Strega]

Even though the CFS report there is mogas available... good luck...

I would much rather land at a "busier" airport, and tank up with 100ll than buy some, 'questionable' mogas..

the 912 will run fine on avgas, it will not on stale, dirty mogas.

[fleetcanuck]

Give CJL5 Lyncrest a try. Mogas and 100LL available. Good grass, good people and close to accommodation.

[cap41]

In Southern Ontairo, both Collingwood, and Eganville sell it at the pump.

[AirFrame]

I would much rather land at a "busier" airport, and tank up with 100ll than buy some, 'questionable' mogas..
the 912 will run fine on avgas, it will not on stale, dirty mogas.

I understand why someone would worry about it being stale, but why would you think mogas is any "dirtier" than avgas?

[Jungle Jim]

Use MMO if you end up having to use 100LL.

Jim

[Strega]

I understand why someone would worry about it being stale, but why would you think mogas is any "dirtier" than avgas?

From the shell station on the corner no.... from some old, unknown, un-maintained fuel tank at some crummy airport in the middle of no-where that sells 100 liters of gas a year.. yes..

Please buy avgas.. in fact,, pretty please.

http://www.tsb.gc.ca/eng/rapports-repor ... 1p0207.asp

[I-Fly-Low]

Thank you all!! There's some great information in there. I'll try to answer a couple questions and give you some more information.

@Posthumane, I should fly out of Springbank, AB

Again, my main priority is Mo Gas availability for each stop and some food/bathroom services for obvious reasons. The aircraft is a CH701 with a Rotax 912 100hp and long range tanks (40gal). So The aircraft does have a good 6-7 hours flight time in it @100mph, but I'm not sure I want to fly long legs like that. I'd rather split the day with 3 or 3.5hrs in the morning, the same in the afternoon and maybe fly between 5-8pm if daylight and conditions permit on some days. The goal is to fuel up, and get back in the air, unless I stop for the night.

First leg should be 3hrs. I plan on leaving the Calgary area to the south, then head to Medecine Hat and continue on to Swift Current for a first stop. Fuel up, then continue on to Brandon for the night via Regina. Next day, Brandon to Dryden via Winnipeg and Kenora, then on to Marathon via Thunder Bay Eldorado. After Marathon, lot of choices so I'm not worried too much.

(Info or tips on Swift or all the other stops I planned are welcomed as they are subject to change - there may be a better options)

First Leg


Second Leg


Third Leg


Fourth Leg


Tell me what you guys think so far.

[I-Fly-Low]

In Southern Ontairo, both Collingwood, and Eganville sell it at the pump.

Airport code for Eganville or more info? Can't find that one?

[goingnowherefast]

Instead of CYWG, could go to Steinbach North, CJB3. They don't have mogas, but the avgas is really cheap. It's cheaper than the 91 octane car gas in Ontario.

[Strega]

This might be a dumb question..

why are you so determined to not use avgas?

I have flown a rotax 912s for about 500 hrs on 100ll without any issue.

[Posthumane]

I'm curious about how your route turns out. I'll probably be heading out to Brandon and Winnipeg some time soon and I'd like to use MoGas along the way, though for me it's strictly for cost reasons.

I really like the Zenair designs and have wanted to build a CH601 HDS for a long time, though it's a bit dated now. The 701 is a nice aircraft as well, there is a guy in Medicine Hat building one. When do you think you'll be coming through? If you'd be willing to stop and take me up for a bit of a flight in it to see how it flies, I may be convinced to buy you a jerry or two for your next leg.

[PilotDAR]

I'm one of the biggest Mogas boosters in Canada. I've flown it in many types, right up a carburetted C 185. But, I won't go far off a planned route to buy it over Avgas. It's too much effort and risk, unless it can be pumped into the aircraft from a filtered and grounded source. Just buy the 100LL along your planned route, and lean the engine as the manufacturer recommends. Yes, its more expensive, but the effort and risk saving of having it right there at the airport is hard to beat. Or, spend an hour hitching a ride into town, with jerry cans, which are smelly, and unsafe, compared to fuel pumped directly into the plane.

As for your route, I suggest following the highway from the Manitoba/Ontario boarder, to Quebec, unless you're going to fly southern Ontario. There is not enough time saving to be worth the risk of the more direct tracks, particularly the north shores of Lakes Superior, and Huron. Direct is very remote in places, with no where to land, and subject to changeable weather.

[cap41]

In Southern Ontairo, both Collingwood, and Eganville sell it at the pump.

Airport code for Eganville or more info? Can't find that one?

CNV8- Edenvale. I misspelled it Eganville. Its very close to Collingwood.