Porter Airlines to power biofuel flight

Porter Airlines is to power a Bombardier Q400 turboprop airliner on biofuels in Canada as the first such revenue flight in the country.

As part of the test flight, the aircraft was the first in Canada to fly on the ASTM D7566 bio derived jet fuel, which has recently been certified.

The fuel is made up of a 50/50 blend with Jet A1 fuel. The biofuels is produced from Camelina sativa (49%) and brassica carinata (1%).

Mike Arcamone, president of Bombardier Commercial Aircraft, says the test flight was ‘flawless’: ‘During the flight, the Q400 aircraft successfully undertook several manoeuvres including engine-out climbs, rapid engine accelerations and cruising to verify the performance of the aircraft while using the bio derived fuel.’

Saskatchewan-based Targeted Growth Canada (TGC), the producer of the crop of Camelina sativa, and Pratt & Whitney Canada, the manufacturer of the PW150A engines that power the Q400 aircraft, are also partners in the project.

The biofuel flight is being made possible thanks to funds from the Green Aviation Research and Development Network and the project’s partners.