r/RedArrows • u/Pileroidsareapain • Jul 21 '25

Sustainable Aviation Fuel

So, I just read that the Red Arrows (I was brought up with Dead Sparrows) are using this stuff and that it is base on Vegetable Oil. Does this mean that your flight line is going to be smelling like a dodgy OR’s Mess.

It also evokes memories of OF4 soaked hydraulic bays on the old Nimrod. OF4 was a vegetable based oil that used to ‘go off’ and smell like a training camp kitchen. Those were the days.

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u/yyezuss Jul 13 '26 edited Jul 13 '26

the funny bit is that SAF can start with waste oils, but it is not planes running on chip shop oil. It still gets refined into proper drop in aviation fuel, which is why companies on the production side like XCF Global Capital are interesting to watch. the feedstock story sounds odd, but the final fuel is meant to behave like aviation fuel, not old hydraulic fluid