Rescue helicopter flies on SAF for the first time

In Germany, a rescue helicopter has flown on sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) for the first time, achieving a new milestone in international aviation. Operated by the German non-profit organization ADAC Luftrettung, the Airbus H145 rescue helicopter has its Arriel 2E engines ceremonially refueled with biofuel, a type of SAF, at the air rescue station at Munich’s Harlaching Clinic in the presence of the ADAC Foundation’s board of directors, as well as the managing directors and top management of ADAC Luftrettung, the engine manufacturer Safran Helicopter Engines, the helicopter manufacturer Airbus Helicopters, and the energy company TotalEnergies. Together, these companies will be a driving force in the decarbonization of helicopter flight by moving away from fossil fuels.

The biofuel fueling the H145 is a second-generation biofuel – the SAF of choice of the aviation industry – which significantly reduces CO2 emissions because they are produced from residual and waste materials, usually from the food industry, such as used vegetable oils and fats. As a result, the fuel has no negative impact on agricultural food production. The fuel used for the first rescue helicopter flight in Munich was produced by TotalEnergies at its refinery in Normandy from used cooking oil.