Air ambulance service
concerned about fuel shortageThe neighbor islands are running low
on supplies of aviation fuel, with
a small shipment expected
The head of the only fixed-wing air ambulance service on the neighbor islands is concerned that a critical shortage of the aviation fuel used for small aircraft could affect potential patients.
The shortage hasn't yet affected flights or patient care, said Andy Kluger, chief executive officer of Hawaii Air Ambulance. But a continuation of the low fuel levels -- especially through the July Fourth weekend -- could mean delays.
Last year, the air ambulance service took more than 200 flights.
Supplies of the 100-octane aviation fuel, the type of gas that small airplanes and some helicopters use, are critically low on the Big Island and Maui, officials said.
The only fuel that remains are small stocks reserved for emergency aircraft, said Anson Kwon, the base manager for Air Service Hawaii in Maui.
ChevronTexaco Hawaii spokes-man Albert Chee said he could not disclose when the next fuel shipment would arrive for security reasons.
But fuel suppliers in Hilo are expecting a smaller-than-average shipment of aviation gas by the weekend and officials in Kona say they're readying for more fuel by Wednesday. Kwon said he expects more fuel in Maui by Monday.
ChevronTexaco is the only provider of the aviation fuel to the Neighbor Islands, while Air Service Hawaii is the islands' only distributor.
Chee said the shortage can likely be attributed to a higher-than-usual fuel demand coupled with a drop in the amount of fuel being shipped because of an out-of-commission fuel storage container. But he said ChevronTexaco Hawaii officials are still investigating other possible causes for the shortage.
"We have been working with customers to resolve some of the delivery challenges," he said. "The supply of the aviation fuel is not an issue, it's just the ability to get it to the neighbor islands."
One of the corporation's three 6,000-gallon fuel containers was due for a regularly scheduled federal inspection and couldn't be used in the last shipment to the islands in late June, Chee said.
Chee said ChevronTexaco has ordered a fourth fuel container that is expected to arrive in late July and will supplement the regular fuel shipment.
Kluger said his pilots are aware of the shortage but said none of his 10 planes have been grounded because of it.
The air ambulance service refuels in Honolulu, where there is no shortage of fuel.
But if for some reason a plane did not have enough fuel to get back to Oahu, the shortage could be a problem, he said.
"We're being very careful with" the fuel shortage, he said, adding ChevronTexaco informed him of a reserve in Hilo that could be made available in an emergency.
Though this is not the first fuel shortage for the neighbor islands, it's certainly the worst, business owners say.
Air Service's Kwon said tour operators and flight schools, whose business have been virtually put on hold until more fuel arrives, are blaming him for the shortage.
"People are pissed. Everybody has their business to operate," he said.
The aircraft that need the aviation fuel range from planes with 20-gallon tanks to craft with 200-gallon fuel capacities.
Kluger said it takes about 90 gallons of fuel for one of his planes -- some of the largest aircraft that use the 100-octane fuel -- to fly from Oahu to Hilo.