The Difference between Aviation Kerosene and household kerosene

In the same way that motor vehicle needs petrol or diesel to move, aircraft also need fuel to fly, too. Aircraft use a special kind of fuel called aviation fuel to transport passengers and cargo from one place to the other. The fuel is known in the aviation industry as Jet-A1.

Aviation fuel is responsible for at least 40% of an airline's operating cost. The availability or non-availability, as the case might be, of aviation fuel, greatly impacts aircraft operations. It influences air transport patronage. For instance, three weeks ago when I boarded a flight, the sight of many empty seats on the aeroplane is proof of this.

The ongoing rally in the price of aviation fuel is one, among many other factors, that has sent the price of air tickets skyrocketing in Nigeria, eating deeply into the profit airline operators would have made.

In commercial arithmetic, when the cost of delivering a service goes up, the price at which the said service will be bought will expectedly go up also – mostly higher to yield profit.

But what exactly does Jet-A1 look like? Is it the same as the kerosine we use at home? Both are similar. Just as kerosine is more highly refined than diesel, so is Jet fuel processed at higher temperatures.

It has superior quality since its physicochemical properties like viscosity, flash point, freezing point, sulphur content, and calorific value must always meet up with standards. In addition, additives are added to ensure it burns more cleanly, efficiently, and without ice formation and rust. You may substitute your household kerosine with aviation kerosine if you can afford it, as it’s a more refined version of kerosine.

Fuel used by aircraft comes in grades or blends depending on whether the engine is powered by turbines or propeller-powered aircraft.

Some widely used grades include Jet A1 (used by commercial airliners), Jet B and JP-4 (30% kerosine and 70% gasoline), JP-5 (used by aircraft aboard aircraft carriers), and JP-8 (used by military aircraft).

Jet-A1 is the one used by airlines in Nigeria. Its price, like diesel, cooking gas (LPG), and household kerosene, is unregulated and often expensive to import or buy.

Currently, Jet-A1 goes for ₦850 on average in Nigeria, rising drastically from an average of ₦400 per lire it sold for in February this year.

The Nigerian government some time ago promised to help make forex (foreign exchange) available and affordable to enable airline operators to buy the fuel, when the latter threatened to shut down operations in the country, but since then nothing much has changed, perhaps you can see why air ticket is unbearably high now.

The question of the availability and affordability of aviation fuel in particular, and by extension, other fuels remains categorically imperative.

The Nigerian government had better act now before things deteriorate further.