CONTEXT:

• The Russian made AN-32 aircraft, IAF’s formidable workhorse has formally been certified to fly on blended aviation fuel containing up to 10% of indigenous bio-jet fuel.
• Jayapal, Chief Executive of the Centre for Military Airworthiness and Certification (CEMILAC) handed over the approval certificate to Air Commodore Sanjiv Ghuratia VSM, Air Officer Commanding at the aero-engine test facilities at Chandigarh.
• This is a huge step in promoting the Make in India mission as this bio-fuel would be produced from Tree Borne Oils (TBOs) sourced from tribal areas and farmers, augmenting their income substantially.

BACKGROUND:

• The IAF has undertaken a series of evaluation tests and trials with this green aviation fuel for the last one year.
• The scope of these checks was in consonance with international aviation standards. IAF followed meticulous testing standards for the use of indigenous bio-jet fuel by the IAF.
• The indigenous bio-jet fuel was first produced by the CSIR-IIP lab at Dehradun in 2013, but could not be tested or certified for commercial use on aircraft due to lack of test facilities in the civil aviation sector.
• On 27 July 2018, Chief of the Air Staff Air Chief Marshal BS Dhanoa had formally announced IAF’s intention to permit the use of all its resources for testing and certifying the indigenous fuel. Since then, IAF’s flight test crew and engineers have been evaluating the performance of this fuel against international standards.