Minister of Civil Aviation Dr. Captain Sameh El Hefny stressed that EgyptAir and other Egyptian airlines have no crisis in the availability of jet fuel in Egypt so far, despite the global crisis resulting from regional events, explaining that the Ministry of Civil Aviation is not responsible for providing fuel, as this is the responsibility of other bodies.
Speaking during his meeting with aviation journalists, the Minister of Civil Aviation said "we are dealing with a crisis with no set duration", and fuel prices have risen significantly, noting that Lufthansa announced the cancellation of 20,000 flights as a result of the fuel crisis, and that all airlines have raised ticket prices by 15% to 20% in an attempt to make up for their losses, load factors and number of flights.
El Hefny noted that EgyptAir is not immune to the crisis, as a large number of its flights to Gulf countries were affected, pointing out that flights to a number of countries have still not resumed.
On the other hand, the Minister of Civil Aviation explained that sustainable aviation fuel is produced by Egyptian shareholding companies under the supervision of the Ministry of Petroleum, while the Ministry of Civil Aviation's role lies in the mechanism for certifying this fuel for use in aircraft, stressing that Egypt is one of the advanced countries in producing sustainable fuel.
He added that sustainable fuel is a blend of fossil fuel and a sustainable "bio" component, and operational trials have been carried out with a 50% sustainable share in jet fuel, which aircraft engines can accept. There are plans to increase this share, but without causing a food crisis, given that food materials are consumed to produce the components used in sustainable biofuel.
