Aviation Fuel

[RJG173]

This is probably a silly question, but did WWI aircraft use ordinary automobile gasoline or had special AV-gas been developed at that point in time.?

[Dom S]

There was a specific "aviation grade" not just "motor grade" fuel in aircraft. The British had the best quality stuff, supplied by Shell from the East Indies. Early in the war they also supplied the French air force, but as demands rose, the French were increasingly supplied by the US, with a slightly lower quality export grade avgas. The Germans were in a much poorer position for oil supplies, so had to settle for what they could get.