Boeing, Airbus Say Recession Won't Stifle Biofuel Plans.

The AP (4/1, Jordans) reported that aircraft makers Boeing and Airbus "said Tuesday they were pushing ahead with the development of planes that run on eco-friendly biofuels despite the economic downturn"; The AP notes that "the sharp drop in oil prices since the start of the global recession has raised concern that the development of fuel-efficient jets may stall"; however, the companies said they are still "working with ethanol and other biofuel producers to make planes ready for the new technologies in the coming decades". Bill Glover, Boeing's director of Airplane Environmental Performance Strategy, "expects biofuels to be certified for regular use in three to five years"; and that "most airlines would use it in some planes by 2015."

Williams Completes Alternative Fuel Tests on FJ44
Flying eNewsletter 04/03/09

The engine that powers Cessna's CJ series, Hawker Beechcraft's Premier and others has just demonstrated its ability to run on "coal-based alternative fuels"; according to Williams International. The Williams FJ44-3 test article burned 2,000 gallons of the fuel—developed at Penn State University. It performed "extremely well"; exhibiting performance numbers on par with the jet-A powered version of the same engine. And the test engine required no modifications as part of the 21-hour, 118-cycle test program. The coal-based fuel was reported as essentially free of sulfur and nitrogen; but exhibited energy density that is higher than that of conventional jet-A. That could translate into longer range using the same amount of fuel.

Aviation Industry Sees Gloomy Future For Biofuels At Geneva Summit.

Flight International (4/7, Turner) reports, "The prospect of aviation moving swiftly to a greener fuel alternative to help reduce its carbon footprint looks increasingly doubtful." British Airways announced at the Aviation and Environment Summit in Geneva that a joint program with Rolls-Royce to test "up to four fuels" had failed to come up with the nearly 16,000 gallons of biofuel needed to conduct proper testing. Boeing's Director of Environmental Performance, Billy Glover, explains that "it's a no-man's land between laboratory test quantities and those that have benefited from a production scale-up after experimentation." Sapphire Energy CEO Jason Pyle "warned delegates that aviation...risks not being able to secure enough biofuel in the requisite quantities in the face of powerful, competing interests."