OEM & IATA recommendations

McDonnell Douglas

DPS 2.49-1 “F” . Revision F of the Douglas Process Standards 2.49-1 – Stored Aircraft Fuel Contamination Control, now includes Fuelstat™ resinae. This is effective as of 3/20/02.

Raytheon Aircraft Corporation

Raytheon Aircraft Corporation have distributed a Communiqué (#71) to all their Beech 1900 Airliner operators dated June 25, 2004 on microbial contamination in aircraft fuel tanks. In it, Raytheon Aircraft Corporation recommend the use of our Fuelstat resinae detection kit. The Communiqué further states that the detailed instructions will be incorporated into the Beech 1900 manuals at the next update. It is our understanding that the recommendation covers all Raytheon Aircraft Corporation airplane types. For confirmation of this, operators are requested to contact their Raytheon field representative directly. Conidia Bioscience has a copy of the Communiqué in the downloads section under service letters. If any operator has not received theirs and would like a copy, please feel free to download a copy from here

Reims Aviation Industries – F406

We have been informed by Reims Aviation Industries that Fuelstat has been incorporated into their maintenance manuals as at 16th June 2005. More details can be obtained from the OEM. We hope to obtain a copy of the relevant pages in due course for insertion on our downloads pages.

The Boeing Airplane Company

Boeing have approved the Fuelstat™ resinae detection kit for use on their aircraft from 31st January 2002.The kit will be added to the Maintenance Manuals as follows:

March 2002 – 727
April 2002 – 767, 747C,
May 2002 – 777, 757, 737 (1&2)
June 2002 – 747-400, 737 (6,7,8&9)
July 2002 – 737 (3,4&5)
August 2002 – MD-80, MD90
September 2002 – 717
October 2002 – DC-10
March 2003 – MD-11

Any operator with a query about this timetable should, in the first instance, approach their Boeing Field Service Representative. The Field Service Rep can obtain a BoeCom confirming these details direct from Puget Sound.

Fokker

Fokker Services have distributed a service letter to all their customers dated 15th February 2004 introducing the Fuelstat resinae detection kit. The service letter states that the kit will be included formally into Chapter 28 of their AMM at the next update. A copy of the letter can be downloaded from our downloads page.

Airbus Industrie

We have received notification from Airbus Industrie that the Fuelstat test kit has now been officially approved for use on their aircraft. The notification states that the approvals will come out in the annual AMM revisions in accordance with Airbus’ publication timetables. Further, Airbus have informed us that:

“Our AMM for all aircraft types will follow the IATA guide for test kit ‘approval’. For LR the revision is already published. A copy of the AMM can be found on our Downloads page. The A320 family revisions follow in Aug. The A300/A310 family revisions will be completed by Mar 05.

If any prospective user has any further questions on this approval they should either contact us direct via the general information contact form on this site, approach their Airbus field representative or Airbus Toulouse.

BAE Systems

BAE Systems Prestwick announced on the 13th February 2004 that, following a full analysis of the Fuelstat resinae detection kit they were authorising its use on their aircraft with immediate effect.

The test is authorised for use on the full range of BAE Systems aircraft: BAE 146, the RJ Series, ATP, J31, J32, J41 and HS 748. The AMMSs for all types will be update in due course. Prospective users are asked to contact their BAE Systems representatives to obtain official confirmation of these facts.

IATA

IATA has published its Guidance Material on Microbial Contamination in Aircraft Fuel Tanks as at 1st November 2002. The document both approves and recommends the use of the Fuelstat™ resinae kit for the detection of microbial contamination in aviation fuel.

In the Introduction, The Guidance states that operators should: “Test the fuel/water found in each aircraft tank with an approved [i.e. Fuelstat™ resinae] microbial growth test kit on a regular basis.”

In the section on Detection, The Guidance then specifies that: “IATA recommends that airlines test for microbial contamination annually. Operators should adjust the interval based on their location and experience.”

This advice is amplified later on in that section by adding: “For each fuel tank on each aircraft, testing for microbial contamination at least once a year is strongly recommended. Sampling frequency should be dependent on the perceived operations risk. For example, short haul operations in tropics are high risk and could warrant routine monthly sampling.”

For clarity, The Guidance also contains a map of the world annotated with high risk areas.

Copies of The Guidance can be ordered through IATA by clicking on the following link –https://www.iataonline.com/store/default – and typing in “microbiological” in the search box at the left hand side of the page. Follow the on-screen prompts to purchase.