Bill Strait and Bob Hackney for Private Jet Magazine

The aviation industry has been one of the first to attempt to embrace the development of an alternative algae-based fuel. While methods such as electricity and hydrogen are being touted as alternative fuel methods for automobiles, the jet engine is best suited to run on something that is closer to its original fuel, which is basically kerosene.

Scientists have known for some years that certain types of algae can produce an oil substance which is similar to crude oil. By now most people realize that crude oil is not the result of dead dinosaurs, but primiarly dead plant life. Up until recently, this was simply a novelty since crude oil was plentiful and cheap, and producing a substitute from algae was prohibitively expensive. It simply made no economic sense to try to develop algae as a fuel source until the price of crude oil started to rise dramatically. While the cost of producing fuel from algae is still more than the cost of jet fuel refined from petroleum, with the combination of economies of scale and rising petroleum costs, the concept is becoming potentially viable. This is similar to the situation with gold. Scientists know that they can extract gold from seawater. The cost of extracting the gold, however, is far in excess of the cost of searching for and mining gold out of the earth.

Captain Strait is rated in G-1, DC-9, B-727, B757/ 767 and seaplanes.  Strait flies the MD-11 worldwide. Bill Strait has also instructed jet pilots in the B-727, B-757 and B-767 in his 32 year aviation career.

Very Light Jets, or VLJs, are here and there is concern over single-pilot operation of them.  Right now there are jets that are flying around with two pilots aboard that could easily be flown with one! Jet planes are actually built so that if one pilot becomes incapacitated, the other has the equipment to land safely.

by Rodney Botts –VLJ Group Vice President of Training Solutions

A new day is dawning in the business aviation world.  We are looking at unprecedented growth in the next 10 years.  From 2007 to 2010 the amount of business airplanes built will increase from 800 a year to 1400 a year (According to a recent Honeywell Study).  From 2010 to 2017 the level of business airplanes built per year will remain somewhere between 1200 and 1400.

In 2007 Very Light Jets were introduced to the business aircraft segment. Less than 75 have been delivered by two manufacturers Cessna and Eclipse!  As other Very light Jet manufacturers enter the market 300 to 400 Very Light Jets will be delivered.  These Very light Jet deliveries will continue at this rate until well past 2017.

What are these "new" planes called Very Light Jets? NBAA defines Very Light Jets (VLJs), as "Jet aircraft weighing 10,000 pounds or less maximum certificated takeoff weight and certificated for single pilot operations. These aircraft will possess at least some of the following features: (1) advanced cockpit automation, such as moving map GPS and multi-function displays; (2) automated engine and systems management; and (3) integrated autoflight, autopilot and flight-guidance systems." The definition is from the National Business Aircraft Association Training Guidelines for Single Pilot Operations of Very Light Jets and Technically Advanced Aircraft.

Where did Very Light Jets come from? They were spawned by the NASA lead Small Aircraft Transportation System or SATS program. This innovative initiative aimed to provide safe air travel in all weather, in new single-pilot aircraft, with advanced navigation systems. SATS proposed the utilization of 5400 smaller airports in the US so we could enjoy point-to-point travel in modern aircraft at affordable prices.