Sustaining the Red Arrows

Jets from the Royal Air Force Aerobatic Team (Red Arrows) were powered with a high-ratio blend of sustainable aviation fuel at this year’s Trooping the Colour event.

The flypast is also thought to be the first time globally that a national aerobatic squadron has switched to both a SAF blend for propulsion and a renewable biofuel – known as hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO) – to produce its distinctive coloured vapour trails.

Squadron Leader Andy King, the Red Arrows’ Senior Engineering Officer and who led the fuels project, comments, ‘Through our use of renewable fuel options, particularly the novel use for the trails, we are demonstrating the best of science, technology, engineering and maths – themes and skills that are at the heart of the Red Arrows and the Royal Air Force as a whole.’

SAF reduces lifecycle carbon emissions, on average, by up to 80% compared to the conventional jet fuel it replaces. HVO is a premium hydrocarbon-based fuel product made of renewable raw materials with a chemical structure almost identical to the regular diesel traditionally used by the aerobatic team for its vapour trails. When judged against this standard diesel, HVO reduces emissions by up to 90 per cent across its life span.

The team will continue to incorporate the sustainable options in future.