Bell Textron
Bell Textron Inc. (NYSE: TXT) announced this week that the Bell 505 completed its first flight fueled solely by 100% Sustainable Aviation Fuel, marking the first single-engine helicopter to fly with 100% SAF.
“This flight is a monumental achievement for sustainability and decarbonization in the rotorcraft industry,” said Michael Thacker, Bell executive vice president/commercial business. “Showcasing a single-engine aircraft’s flight capabilities with 100% SAF signals Bell’s commitment to alternative fuel usage and builds on its sustainability practices in its flight operations.”
Neste, the SAF supplier, and Virent Inc. — a Marathon Petroleum Corp. subsidiary that manufactures renewable fuels and chemicals — collaborated to blend, test, and deliver the SAF.
SAF, made from used cooking oil or other bio-based feedstocks, typically must be blended with petroleum products because it doesn’t include a component called “aromatics,” which is required to meet aviation fuel specifications.
Virent manufactures an aromatics component made from renewable plant sugars, which was added to Neste’s neat SAF, eliminating the need to blend SAF with petroleum fuel. The SAF supplied for this test flight by Neste and Virent is therefore a “100% drop-in” replacement for petroleum-based aviation fuel, requiring no engine modifications.
Safran Helicopter Engines, manufacturer of the Arrius 2R engine on the Bell 505, and GKN Aerospace, the fuel system component supplier, conducted testing on the engine and fuel system components.
“SAF is one of the key pillars in our strategy to decarbonize the helicopter industry,” said Valentin Safir, Safran executive vice president/programs. “Our engines are certified to operate on up to 50% SAF and our objective is to certify in the coming years the use of 100% SAF, which can potentially result in carbon lifecycle emissions reductions by up to 80%.”
Bell’s own training fleet and demonstration aircraft currently use SAF in their operations. The team continues to guide customer conversations around its implementation and monitors SAF testing in a dedicated Bell 505 with Safran Helicopter Engines.
This flight supports Textron’s Achieve 2025 Sustainable Footprint goal for 20% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions across the enterprise, among other sustainability initiatives.
The Bell 505 is a five-seat aircraft designed for safety and efficiency while using the most advanced technology to date. The platform uses a fully integrated Garmin G1000H NXi avionics suite and Safran Arrius 2R engine with a dual-channel FADEC.