Within the next five years, half of the jet fuel that the Air Force consumes domestically each year will be synthetic fuel blends, said Kevin Geiss, the service’s deputy assistant secretary for energy. Speaking Wednesday at an AFA-sponsored event in Arlington, Va., Geiss said this approach would protect the service from fuel price volatility, while allowing the US government to purchase greater amounts of fuel from domestic sources. “This gives us greater control over our destiny and makes us more adaptable and agile in defending our interests,” he said. Over the next 10 years to 15 years, the Air Force will see the emergence of more fuel-efficient engines, such as those in development under the ADVENT program (see below), he said. “Not only will this save us more money on fuel costs, it also gives our aircraft more range, increases time on station, and reduces the logistics burden due to refueling,” said Geiss. By 2025, one quarter of the electric power that the Air Force consumes each year will come from renewable sources, such as wind or solar, he said. These kinds of projects could save the Air Force “tens of millions of dollars annually,” he added.
Members of the House Armed Services Committee say the AIM-260 Joint Advanced Tactical Missile program has been set back three months due to the ongoing government shutdown. The comment is noteworthy because the JATM's status has been kept tightly under wraps.
