Is it possible to safely operate a Boeing 777 on diesel instead of Jet-A? Are there any regulations that prevent this? Would it cause any damage?
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3$\begingroup$ The other question (aviation.stackexchange.com/questions/12184/…) is not a duplicate of this question because the answers there do not answer the question here. There is no answer there which states whether or not it would be safe to operate a 777 on diesel fuel, or whether or not that would cause any damage. $\endgroup$– Sophie SwettCommented Jun 13, 2017 at 17:14
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$\begingroup$ JetA, diesel, kerosene, fuel oil are all 98% the same. Shouldn't be a problem at all. $\endgroup$– 0tyranny0povertyCommented Jun 16, 2017 at 3:09
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1$\begingroup$ Unfortunately your question is overzealously marked as a duplicate. Please find the approved fuels for any specific model aircraft on the Type Certificate Data Sheet (TCDS). Here is a link: rgl.faa.gov/Regulatory_and_Guidance_Library/rgMakeModel.nsf/0/… $\endgroup$– STWilsonCommented Jun 19, 2017 at 12:54
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$\begingroup$ @STWilson thanks for the link, unfortunately cannot find any mention of diesel. So, I'm assuming it's not safe. Hopefully, unmarking the duplicate would result in someone being able to answer the question. $\endgroup$– TayECommented Jun 19, 2017 at 14:53
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$\begingroup$ Not being certified does not necessarily make it unsafe, although it would be illegal, and one can make an assumption that it wasn't certified because it isn't safe, however it could also just be because there isn't enough demand for it... $\endgroup$– LnafzigerCommented Jul 26, 2017 at 15:56
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1 Answer
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No. The fuel system would risk to clog up with gelled diesel fuel in the low temperatures at cruise altitude. If you had omitted "safely" in your question, the answer might be different.
Before I repeat what others have written before, I refer you to this excellent answer by @voretaq7. The essential part is:
Why don't we burn highway diesel or heating kerosene in a 747? In a word, purity. The additional controls imposed on Jet-A fuel by the associated standard produce a product with well-known properties. When you fuel a plane with Jet-A you can be confident that fuel won't freeze in the tanks at altitude (at least not unless you cold-soak it below -40 degrees). You also know the fuel will be "clean" and won't gunk up fuel filters or leave deposits inside the combustion core of the engine that can cause problems later.
answered Jul 26, 2017 at 16:55