The RAF Voyager – the military equivalent of an Airbus A330 – took to the skies over Oxfordshire using waste-based fuels including used cooking oil. Sustainable aviation fuel, known as SAF, has the potential to reduce carbon emissions by up to 80%, according to the RAF. It is hoped their use will push the RAF closer to its net zero target by 2040, while reducing its reliance on global supply chains. As well as being the first in the UK, the trip was also the first in the world to use fully sustainable fuel for a military aircraft of its size. Defense Secretary Baroness Goldie described it as “an important moment” for the RAF. He said: “Through the RAF’s pioneering spirit, expertise and partnership with UK industry, British science and engineering is leading the way in improving operational resilience and developing future operational capabilities in a changing climate world. “They should be rightly proud of this achievement – it is an important moment for the RAF and an exciting development for the Ministry of Defense (MoD). Read more RAF: RAF jets shoot down 53 drones in biggest ever mass air-to-air missile exercise RAF boss defends service recruitment saying ‘no discrimination’ Flight Lieutenant Nick Dehnel, from the RAF, worked with Carlos M San Millan and Pedro Martin, both from Airbus, to plan the feat. It followed the world’s first successful flight of a small synthetic fuel aircraft, which completed a 90-minute journey from RAF Brize Norton last November. Synthetic fuel is made from water and carbon dioxide, which is pressurized and an electric current is passed through it. Picture: Chief of the Air Staff Air Chief Sir Mike Wigston (right) welcomes Flight Lieutenant Nick Dehnel Flight Test Engineer Air Marshal Sir Mike Wigston described the flight as another “significant milestone” on the way to becoming the world’s first zero-emission aviation by 2040. The aviation secretary at the Department for Transport (DfT), Baroness Vere, said the success of the test flights was “a victory for the planet and a testament to British ingenuity”. He added that the DfT had launched a £165m fund aimed at boosting the sustainable fuel industry on its journey towards the first net-zero transatlantic flight next year.
