When I began to get a good whiff of fuel after filling the right main of 7 Lima Juliet, my 1966 Cessna 182J, I knew it was bladder time. I recalled from my days as a tech rep that the most common failure of a light airplane fuel bladder is age-related deterioration of the top surface due to long-term exposure to heat.
I knew it as soon as I saw the telltale stripes of blue dye on the metal fairing covering the gap between the bottom of the right wing and the fuselage.
