The Air 
Force has flown an F-15 for the first time on a fuel blend containing a biomass-derived fuel in addition to standard JP-8 aviation fuel. Members of the 46th Test Wing, along with USAF engineers, evaluated the F-15 engines’ performance with this fuel mixture during the Oct. 22 test at Eglin AFB, Fla. The biomass-derived portion of the fuel blend is known as hydro-treated renewable jet fuel, or HRJ. It is one type of alternative aviation fuel that the Air Force leadership wants to see the entire aircraft fleet certified to run on as a means of reducing US dependence on foreign sources of energy. Animal fat and plant oils are the feedstock for HRJ. Back in March, an A-10 became the Air Force’s first platform to fly on the JP-8/HRJ blend. (Air Force photo caption by 2nd Lt. Andrew Caulk)
A new report from the Government Accountability Office calls for the Pentagon’s Chief Technology Officer to have budget certification authority over the military services’ research and development accounts—a move the services say would add a burdensome and unnecessary layer of bureaucracy.
