Aviation gasoline (avgas) is the aviation fuel most commonly used in piston-engine aircraft. Avgas remains the only transportation fuel in the United States to contain lead. More than 222,600 registered piston-engine aircraft can operate on leaded avgas. The most common and reliable type of avgas is 100 octane Low Lead, also known as 100LL. This leaded fuel contains tetra-ethyl-lead (TEL), which is an additive used to prevent engine damage at higher power settings. Although the FAA does not have direct regulatory responsibility for aviation fuels, it provides the initial certification approval of the aircraft with the fuel it operates on, and it oversees aircraft operators to ensure use of the correct fuel.
Getting the Lead Out
The FAA is working with critical government and industry partners to develop a multi-layered strategy to reduce and ultimately eliminate lead and its potential harmful effects from fuel for piston-engine aircraft based on various recommendations in the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM) report. This strategy includes continued FAA collaboration with industry through the Piston Aviation Fuels Initiative (PAFI).
The FAA also continues to support other fuel applicants who have decided to pursue engine and airframe approvals that would allow the use of their fuel formulations via traditional certification processes, through the supplemental type certificate (STC) process, as spelled out in Section 565(c) of the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2018.
Path to a Lead-Free Aviation System – the EAGLE Initiative
On February 23, 2022, the FAA joined aviation and petroleum industry stakeholders to announce a comprehensive public-private partnership to transition to lead-free aviation fuels for piston-engine aircraft by the end of 2030. This initiative to Eliminate Aviation Gasoline Lead Emissions (EAGLE) will expand and accelerate government and industry actions and investments as well as establish the necessary policies and activities to permit both new and existing general aviation aircraft to operate lead-free, without compromising aviation safety and the economic and broader public benefits of general aviation.
The EAGLE Initiative is based on four pillars of action (depicted in the graphic above) designed to foster the necessary regulatory, innovation, and infrastructure solution sets to enable the commercial viability needed to facilitate the transition.
On March 16-17, 2022, the inaugural EAGLE meeting was held in Washington, D.C. This two-day EAGLE meeting was an industry-sponsored event that convened more than 120 U.S. and international stakeholders to:
- Discuss the EAGLE framework; review details of each pillar; identify activities and associated timelines; and discuss initial commitments of time, resources, and expertise to support the four pillars.
- Provide individual feedback on potential outcomes and actions for each pillar.
The next broad stakeholder meeting will be held on June 23, 2022. In the meantime, pillar workgroups will hold individual meetings and work to put the leadership structure in place and further operationalize the four pillars.
FAA & EPA Collaboration
The FAA is also in close collaboration with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on lead emissions associated with avgas.
- EPA Regulations for Lead Emissions from Aircraft
- EPA Press Release, January 12, 2020: Evaluating Lead Emissions from Piston-Engine Aircraft
Media Inquiries: Contact the FAA Press Office at pressoffice@faa.gov
Contact the FAA’s Alternative Fuels Team
Avgas Information and Resources
Reports
- The National Academies Press, Options for Reducing Lead Emissions from Piston-Engine Aircraft
- Final report of the Unleaded AVGAS Transition Aviation Rulemaking Committee (UAT ARC) - Unleaded AVGAS Findings & Recommendations
Legislation and Policy
- Section 565, Aviation Fuel, of the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2018 (Pub. L. 115-254)
- Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Circular No. A-119 (February 10, 1998)
Advisory Information