Fueling Mix-up Caught Before Takeoff

What happened when similar-looking twin-engine Commanders, operated by the same company and with nearly identical registration numbers, were parked nearby on the same ramp at the same time waiting to be refueled? One of them received the wrong fuel. The mistake occurred on September 9 at Canada’s Dryden Regional Airport (CYHD) but was caught before the aircraft even started up.

According to a recent Transportation Safety Board of Canada incident report, Aero Commander Rockwell 500S, a piston-twin registered as C-FRBD and operated by Mag Aerospace Canada, was parked on the apron with the company’s Commander 690A, a turboprop carrying registration C-FDBD. The pilot of C-FDBD contacted the fueling agent and requested jet-A for the 690A.

However, the fueling agent subsequently began fueling C-FRBD, the 500S, with jet-A instead of avgas. For reasons unspecified, fueling was stopped after less than six gallons of jet fuel was pumped into the piston-twin. The pilot of the turboprop twin was immediately notified of the incorrect fueling. Although the engines were never powered up, the aircraft's operator still had to completely drain the fuel tanks.