Day 10-11 Spirit of Douglas Sector 2

For non-aviators, here’s a quick aircraft fuel 101. Jet aircrafts are fuelled with Jet A-1 (think diesel). Small single-engine propeller aircraft and old-school DC3 piston-engine aircraft, run on a different fuel called Avgas (think petrol). And you can’t swap one for the other without causing major problems.

Modern airports that service only commercial jets don’t generally stock Avgas. A big part of the puzzle on the World Cruiser Tour is joining the dots between airports where it can be sourced. Even then, getting enough isn’t straightforward. It can take more than one trip for a small fuel trailer to fill the aircraft. It’s also really time-consuming. In some places, Avgas has to be pumped by hand from barrels, which is a daunting prospect.

Add border controls, airfield opening hours, crew rest requirements and aircraft range into the mix and it becomes a complex jigsaw. The result is that the route isn’t always a straight line. Today was one of those days.

Fuelling at Thumamah took four and a half hours once the truck had refilled and returned. That’s not including the flight time to and from Riyadh.

Back in Riyadh, the full team reassembled, cleared emigration and supported the Saudi authorities who wanted to film Spirit of Douglas for the 80th anniversary of civilian air operations in the Kingdom. Civil aviation here began after WWII with a single twin-engine Douglas DC3 which was a gift from US President Franklin D Roosevelt.

With that done, we finally departed for Abu Dhabi. Most of the flight was in darkness. As we came in to land, the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque was illuminated below us. Its 82 white domes and intricate architecture were a striking sight against the night sky. It was early morning by the time we’d landed, cleared customs and found where we were sleeping. Our comfy beds were very welcome.

Abu Dhabi, UAE
Saturday 24 January

Avgas Practice 102

Best laid plans.

Our flight didn’t eventuate as intended. Instead, it became a long day on the ramp, undertaking maintenance. Tyler led the work, assisted by Nick and the wider team.

We took the opportunity to refuel, with Avgas of course, pumped from drums. It’s a slow and labour-intensive process. Jenny and I both got plenty of practice.

The film crew managed interviews with several team members who are finishing their journey here. More on that in the next update.

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