This whole Fungal Growth in Fuel thing.

[Ganyeka]

Firstly, I am not a Pilot. I am a lawyer. That alone may be grounds on which to hang, draw and quarter me. I do have 2 close friends who are Pilots, both with Virgin Blue. I don't know if that helps.

The reason for me posting on this forum is slightly obscure. I have a client who is, amongst other things, an inventor. He is very intelligent, but, how do I say this delicately, he's "unconventional". He recently posted as Fungal Bob in your Tech Forum about fungal growth in fuel and was roundly criticised. I believe his intentions to have been honourable. He isn't trolling or spamming for commercial benefit. He has connected some dots and become concerned by the inferences he has drawn. He does have existing technology that is relevant to fuels and specifically to microbial contamination, hence his interest. He is one of these guys who genuinely wants to help.

I'm trying to get my head around the issue and thought I might humbly seek the views of this Forum's members.

I cannot technically assess the merits of the various arguments but a few things seem clear. At the risk of over-simplification, microbial contamination and fungal growth in aircraft fuel seems well recognized. It's effects are known to be problematic for engines and other parts due to corrosion, blocked filters (and one therefore assumes fuel delivery), wing electrics and structural elements etc. Whilst there seems to be maintenance routines for detection and correction and various additives to combat this microbial contamination, it seems clear that it does, nonetheless, routinely cause both minor and serious safety concerns.

It also seems clear that these procedures for detection, correction, repair and prevention are challenging and frequently expensive. And, as with all of these types of systems and procedures, if they aren't followed properly, or something goes wrong whilst performing them such that they are imperfectly performed, the consequences can be severe.

Any issues so far? I'm just trying to lay some groundwork and establish what my understanding of the situation is.

So if this issue really is as potentially serious as it seems to be, isn't an alternative solution that is basically 100% effective, cheap and essentially permanent something people would be interested in?

I'm just asking. And I am asking genuinely, not as a prelude to a product flog etc. I am just trying to understand the dynamics of the problem and the politics etc surrounding how it is currently handled.

Cheers and Thanks, in anticipation.