Flight International - 04

“As many programmes tend to be adopted by
multiple nations, funding and workshare could raise
the complexity of implementation.”
The spectre of complexity tends to mean higher
costs, which can derail innovation. This is where
government support is essential to signal, regulate
and subsidise the transition.
In late 2022, the US Department of Defense
(DoD) was tasked to prepare a plan for increasing
the production and use of SAF in the Pentagon’s
aviation operations. Under the 2023 National Defense
Authorization Act (NDAA), the DoD will have one
year to identify at least two “geographically diverse”
sites within the current US military footprint to carry
out a pilot programme on SAF use.
Following an initial year to identify test sites, the
DoD is required to generate a plan for using a jet fuel
blend of at least 10% SAF by 2028 at these bases.
The US military has been involved in the
development of SAF for over a decade. In 2010 an
unmodified US Navy Boeing F/A-18F Super Hornet
flew from NAS Patuxent River in Maryland powered
by a 50:50 blend of sustainable biofuel and jet fuel.
At the time, Boeing said that “operating navy
platforms with renewable energy sources such as
30%
Reduction in fuel burn P&WC expects from hybrid-powered
Dash 8-100, compared with conventional turboprops
sustainable biofuels are part of the service's strategy
to reduce reliance on fossil fuels by half over the
next decade”.
That aspiration has not been met, but throughout
this period the US military has continued its strong
support in the research and development and fuel
qualification phase for SAF, explains Steve Csonka,
executive director of the Commercial Aviation
Alternative Fuels Initiative (CAAFI).
Crown Copyright
Formed in 2006, CAAFI is a coalition of airlines,
aircraft and engine manufacturers, energy producers,
researchers, international participants, and US government
agencies leading the development and deployment
of alternative jet fuels for commercial aviation.
Price matters
Turning the military’s interest in SAF into joining
airlines in buying it is the next stage, but by no
means easy. Firstly, the US military is legally obliged
to acquire fuel based on price. There are the seeds
of legislation in the US system that may allow SAF
to be bought in the future, but for now its use is
limited to a few trials.
Secondly, if SAF is acquired, and it is more expensive
than regular jet fuel, in a finite budget world the
military may have to cut back elsewhere to balance
the books. This is problematic if mission capability is
degraded or spending on platforms is curtailed.
Could fuel made from air make the grade?
The prospect of producing sustainable aviation
fuel utilising embryonic carbon transformation
technologies has led the US Department of Defense
to begin work with a start-up in this field to explore
the opportunity.
The deal in February saw developer Air Company
awarded a contract with a ceiling value of $65
million from the Defense Innovation Unit to produce
Airmade jet fuel at certain selected US Air Force
(USAF) bases.
Air Company notes that the USAF is currently
identifying and developing potential sites suitable
for its Airmade SAF production across the USA, to
be available ahead of 2030.
In mid-2022, the USAF and Air Company kicked
off their partnership with a flight demonstration of a
small, unmanned jet powered 100% by Airmade SAF
in a project called Fierce.
Air Company produced five gallons of SAF using
its carbon utilisation technology. This features its
carbon conversion reactor system, where carbon
dioxide captured from industrial plants is combined
with green hydrogen. There are further steps
involving a catalytic converter to finish with a SAF
that Air Company claims has an emissions reduction
potential as high as 99%, depending on the lowcarbon
electricity source used.
“In addition to its sustainability benefits, our
technology enables strategic control of fuel supply
and availability for our partners,” says Stafford
Sheehan, Air Company’s chief technology officer
and co-founder.
Air Company
58 Flight International April 2023