F-15 Flies with Biomass Fuel Blend

Oct. 26, 2010

The Air Force has flown an F-15 for the first time on a fuel blend containing a biomass-derived fuel in addition to standard JP-8 aviation fuel. Members of the 46th Test Wing, along with USAF engineers, evaluated the F-15 engines’ performance with this fuel mixture during the Oct. 22 test at Eglin AFB, Fla. The biomass-derived portion of the fuel blend is known as hydro-treated renewable jet fuel, or HRJ. It is one type of alternative aviation fuel that the Air Force leadership wants to see the entire aircraft fleet certified to run on as a means of reducing US dependence on foreign sources of energy. Animal fat and plant oils are the feedstock for HRJ. Back in March, an A-10 became the Air Force’s first platform to fly on the JP-8/HRJ blend. (Air Force photo caption by 2nd Lt. Andrew Caulk)

Related Content

Lockheed Martin Says It Will Compete for Advanced Fighter Trainer

Oct. 15, 2021
Lockheed Martin plans to enter the Advanced Tactical Trainer fray to supply the Air Force with a new jet to bridge undergraduate flight instruction and fighter training units, but the company declined to say whether it will offer a T-50A derivative, a different non-developmental airplane, or a clean-sheet design. Its…

Space Force Shakes Up Acquisition Again in Effort to Achieve Efficiencies

Oct. 15, 2021
The Space Force confirmed that it will reorganize space acquisition and space policy authorities starting Oct. 18 in an effort to streamline decision-making in line with Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall’s plan announced in August. The Department of the Air Force's plan involves breaking out space policy from the as-yet…

Van Ovost Takes Command of TRANSCOM, Pledging to ‘Underpin Lethality’

Oct. 15, 2021
Air Force Gen. Jacqueline D. Van Ovost assumed command of U.S. Transportation Command during a ceremony at Scott Air Force Base, Ill., on Oct. 15, becoming just the second woman to lead a unified combatant command. To meet new challenges, the military needs “every Jackie Van Ovost that we can…

C-17 Pilot is Biden’s Nominee for USAF Installations Czar

Oct. 14, 2021
The Biden Administration plans to nominate Ravi Chaudhary, a former Air Force C-17 pilot and member of the Senior Executive Service with the Federal Aviation Administration, as assistant secretary of the Air Force for installations, environment, and energy. In his last post, he was director of advanced programs and innovation…

Contractor Employees Who Object to Vaccines May Not Get Much Backup

Oct. 14, 2021
As the military’s COVID-19 vaccination deadlines close in, federal contractors such as Boeing, L3Harris, and others are also demanding employees get vaccinated, driven by President Biden's executive order issued Sept. 9. About 63 percent of working-age Americans were vaccinated as of Oct. 7, according to the White House. Assuming those…

Bomber Task Force Refuels With Airmen-Designed Kit Fit for ACE

Oct. 14, 2021
Master Sgt. Jason Yunker literally scribbled his hot-pit refueling idea on the back of a bar napkin. As of Oct. 11, it became part of the Air Force's new operational concept of agile combat employment while promising to save his command more than $1 million a year. At Spangdahlem Air…

Why the Army Clings to Its Space Troops: ‘Translating Geek to Grunt’

Oct. 13, 2021
On Jan. 8, 2020, Iran launched a barrage of 14 rockets at Al Asad Air Base, where American troops were stationed in Iraq. The 20th Theater Missile Warning Company, part of the Army's 1st Space Brigade, was in Qatar receiving direct downlink data from a Space Force constellation at the…