Refuelling business responds to demands created by the switch to commuter planes.

New demands are being placed on the airplane refuelling business as a result of the switch from passenger jets to commuter planes in Northern Ontario.

"Four years ago we refuelled 4,000 scheduled flights a year, but now we average about 12,000," says Brock Marshal, president of Maintair Aviation Services Ltd of Thunder Bay. "This hasn't affected our volume of sales, but we're working much harder to pump the same amount of fuel."

Marshall explains that the Boeing 737 and Douglas DC-9 passenger jets previously operated in the north by Canadian Airlines and Air Canada called for tremendous quantities of bulk fuel.

Smaller commuter planes such as Handley Page Jetstreams, De Havilland Dash-8s and Beechcraft products require less fuel, but more frequent flights have maintained Maintair Aviation's overall sales.

"This has meant more staff, increased wear and tear on equipment and more paper to push," Marshall adds.

Maintair Aviation has represented Shell Oil since 1968 after receiving a ground servicing contract with Air Canada. Company founder Harold Neumann started the firm after working as the airplane mechanic for Thunder Bay's local flying club.

Neumann began operating the Maintair Aviation in the present Bearskin Airlines' hangar. Today the company's staff work from a 1,040-square-foot office and utilize a 2,400-square-foot garage for vehicle repairs.

Marshall, a licensed private pilot, joined the organization in 1974 and became the owner 14 years later.

Eight employees fuel the airplanes using four tanker trucks valued at between $150,000 and $175,000 each. Although the expense is offset by vehicle life - up to 20 years - purchase prices remain high because each unit must be custom built.

HIGHLY TRAINED

While people in the airplane refuelling business are sometimes knick-named "hoseheads" or "pump jockeys," Marshall argues that his staff members have a tremendous amount of responsibility.

"It's no longer a case of starting a truck and jamming a hose into a gas tank. The training is quite extensive," he says.

"First they start here on the job for hands-on experience and then they attend a comprehensive Shell course in Ottawa. It's sun-up to sun-down for them, with an examination at the end before certification by Shell."

In addition, refuellers must take regular refresher and upgrading courses, and Shell also conducts unscheduled operational audits of Maintair Aviation.

"We're usually not warned that they are coming, but that doesn't matter," says Marshall. "If you're in the business of selling aircraft fuel, you keep your standards up and never fool with quality."

Marshall admits that certified airplane refuellers are difficult to replace. Besides the required training, it takes about three months for a potential refueller to receive the security clearance necessary to work on an airport ramp.

"I can't send a guy down the ramp to get a bag of ice for somebody's airplane," says Marshall. "In most other lines of work, you can take a guy off the street and he'll be productive in a month. Someone with refuelling experience is valuable to me."

The volatile products handled by Marshall and his staff are monitored closely. Daily and weekly quality-control checks ensure that foreign matter or water does not cause contamination.

Jet and piston-engine airplanes use various grades of aviation fuel which generally do not mix. Constant vigilance and refresher training ensure that no one makes a disastrous mistake.

"All safety procedures are followed in ground handling and bonding, and we make sure the captain of the airplane understands exactly what goes into his tanks," says Marshall. "Whenever possible, we get written and specific instructions from crew members."

Fuel which is determined to be unusable eventually goes to the airport's fire fighting and emergency response crews for training purposes. Local residents are aware that towering black columns of smoke flowing from the airport area indicate that fire training is in progress.

FUEL-WISE

Improvements in fuel efficiency have also affected the operations of Maintair Aviation.

For example, planes which carry American tourists north to wilderness lodges now stop less often at Thunder Bay for refuelling.

"Airlines are running tight uplift procedures. Once they have their loads, everything is calculated and they take exactly what they need, plus reserves, but no excess," Marshall says. "They make sure they have plenty of fuel, but the days of "fill it up" are gone since they cannot afford to haul the extra weight."

However, because of its central location, Thunder Bay is expected to continue serving as a hub for aviation traffic, according to Marshall.

In the future he hopes to expand his operation to become a full-service Shell Aero Centre similar to ones in Calgary, Ottawa and Toronto. Reception lounges, showers, "snooze" rooms for pilots and passengers may be provided, as well as a maintenance hangar and possible on-site restaurant.