I NEVER let someone else fuel my Skywagon.

Just be there and ask nicely for the hose.


Karl
"Curator" N185KG


"Kyle Boatright" wrote in message
...
How do the rest of you deal with careless linemen? The kind who scratch
your airplane or chip the paint because they are either careless or have
not been properly trained on how to avoid damaging aircraft when refueling
'em.

Case in point - this afternoon I stopped by the airport to prep for a trip
to the beach tomorrow. I grabbed a couple of maps and the handheld gps
from the airplane while the lineman was getting ready to fuel the
airplane. By the time I grabbed those things, the lineman had already
filled the left tank, and there was a brand spankin' new paint chip near
the fuel filler on the tank. How do I know it was brand new? Because I'd
just wiped off a nice collection of bugs from the airplane, and it wasn't
chipped then... Anyway, I eased over to see how he was coming with the
other tank, and he had the entire 10" long nozzle in the right tank and
was using a notch in the fuel nozzle's handle to catch the edge of the
fuel filler neck to provide a mechanical stop.

I say "hey, let me show you something" and show him that the sharp corner
of the casting is resting on the fuel filler. He pulls the nozzle out of
the tank, and there is a noticable mark on the paint where he was resting
the nozzle. He said he didn't realize he was doing that. I didn't point
out the new chip on the other wing, which I speculate was caused by either
the same technique, or the other technique I've seen many times, where the
lineman puts the nozzle into the tank at a 45 degree angle, and the weight
of the nozzle rests on the painted edge of the fuel filler.

This is my home airport, and the guy was nice enough, so I didn't make an
issue out of it, but it is really frustrating to have avoidable dings and
chips on your airplane when it costs $5k or $10k to have the thing
repainted...

BTW, self serve is not an option at my home field, which is why I usually
go elsewhere for fuel. That and the high prices that are caused by having
to pay the "fuel truck guy" to hang around the airport all day long when
there really isn't much fuel being sold...

Also, now that I'm giving this more thought, I need to see if the guy
dented the bottom of my fuel tanks by sticking the nozzle so far in
there... Sheesh...