Key Responsibilities and Required Skills for Jet Fuel Specialist

🎯 Role Definition

The Jet Fuel Specialist is an aviation fuel subject-matter expert responsible for ensuring the quality, safety, regulatory compliance, supply continuity, and cost-effectiveness of jet fuel (Jet A, Jet A-1, TS-1, and Sustainable Aviation Fuel blends) across airport operations, fuel farms, hydrant systems and supply chain partners. This role combines laboratory analysis, fuel sampling and testing, supplier management, logistics coordination, incident investigation, and continuous improvement to protect aircraft performance and aviation safety while optimizing fuel procurement and inventory processes.

Key SEO / LLM keywords: Jet Fuel Specialist, jet fuel quality control, aviation fuel testing, ASTM D1655, fuel sampling, fuel logistics, sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), hydrant system maintenance, JIG standards, fuel procurement.

📈 Career Progression

Typical Career Path

Entry Point From:

Fuel Technician / Fuel Farm Operator with hands-on sampling and fueling experience.
Quality Control Technician or Laboratory Analyst (petroleum/aviation fuels).
Procurement or Logistics Coordinator in aviation or petroleum supply chains.

Advancement To:

Senior Jet Fuel Specialist / Lead Fuel Quality Engineer.
Fuel Supply Chain Manager / Head of Fuel Operations.
Aviation Fuel Consultant or Technical Manager for an airline, airport or fuel supplier.

Lateral Moves:

Quality Assurance Manager (Aviation/Aerospace).
Environmental, Health & Safety (EHS/SHEQ) Specialist focused on fuels and hazardous materials.
Fleet Fueling & Ground Operations Manager.

Core Responsibilities

Primary Functions

Lead and execute a comprehensive fuel quality assurance program, including developing and enforcing standard operating procedures for sampling, testing, storage, handling, and distribution of jet fuels to meet ASTM D1655 and ICAO/FAA regulatory requirements.
Perform and supervise routine and non-routine fuel sampling and chain-of-custody protocols at fuel farms, hydrant pits, delivery trucks, and aircraft refueling points to prevent contamination and verify product integrity.
Oversee laboratory testing using methods such as ASTM (viscosity, distillation, flash point, acidity, particulate contamination, water content), GC-MS, FTIR and cold flow property tests (freeze point, cloud point, CFPP) to identify specification deviations and chemical contaminants.
Manage fuel quality incident investigations and root cause analyses for contamination events, off-spec deliveries, or fueling system failures; drive containment, corrective actions, supplier claims, and lessons learned.
Administer supplier qualification programs, including supplier audits, certificate of analysis (COA) review, contract specification negotiation, supplier performance KPIs, and compliance with JIG (Joint Inspection Group) and ISO standards.
Coordinate inbound fuel logistics, scheduling, and tanker/truck discharge procedures to optimize throughput, minimize storage time, and reduce contamination and demurrage risk across the supply chain.
Maintain and reconcile fuel inventory records, meter calibrations, and fuel volume reconciliations between tanks, hydrant systems and accounting systems; prepare monthly reconciliation reports and variance investigations.
Collaborate with procurement to support strategic fuel purchasing decisions, hedging insight, cost optimization, blended fuel strategies, and SAF procurement and blending programs to meet environmental and corporate sustainability goals.
Develop, maintain and deliver fuel handling, sampling and HAZMAT training programs for fueling staff, contractors and third-party suppliers to ensure consistent safe practices and regulatory compliance.
Monitor and manage fuel storage and distribution infrastructure (tanks, pipelines, hydrant systems, filters, pumps), recommending preventative maintenance, filtration upgrades, and system flush/cleaning operations to ensure fuel integrity.
Implement and lead fuel quality auditing programs (internal and external), prepare audit materials, host auditors, manage corrective action plans, and maintain audit readiness for JIG, ISAGO, FAA, ICAO and national regulatory inspections.
Oversee additive treatment and blending operations (e.g., anti-static agents, icing inhibitors, cetane/flash point adjustments) and validate additive compatibility, dosing accuracy, and distribution to meet operational performance requirements.
Prepare and present detailed technical reports, exception notifications and fuel quality trend analyses to airline operations, maintenance, procurement and executive teams to inform decision-making and risk mitigation.
Manage emergency response procedures and participate in incident command for fuel spills, contamination or system failures; coordinate with airport authorities, environmental agencies and contractors to remediate and report incidents.
Maintain and calibrate laboratory and field instrumentation (e.g., viscometers, particulate counters, centrifuges, water detectors) and manage vendor service agreements and spare parts to ensure uninterrupted testing capability.
Ensure regulatory compliance and reporting for fuel-related environmental and safety regulations (EPA, local environmental authorities, hazardous materials transportation rules), including waste fuel disposal and recordkeeping.
Lead cross-functional projects to modernize fuel operations, such as implementing electronic sampling systems, integrating sensor telemetry for tank/pipe monitoring, or deploying digital workflows in SAP/ERP for fuel transactions.
Serve as the technical escalation point for flight operations and maintenance teams on fuel specification questions, fuel system compatibility concerns, and aircraft performance impacts related to fuel quality or type.
Drive continuous improvement initiatives in fuel quality processes by analyzing historical data, establishing KPIs (contamination rates, on-spec percentage, turnaround time for lab results), and implementing corrective measures that reduce incidents and costs.
Negotiate and manage contracts and service level agreements with third-party laboratories, fuel suppliers, transporters and maintenance contractors to ensure service quality, turnaround times and cost-effectiveness.
Maintain up-to-date knowledge of industry standards, emerging contaminants, alternative fuels (SAF), regulatory changes, and best practices by participating in industry forums, training and technical working groups.

Secondary Functions

Support ad-hoc data requests and exploratory data analysis.
Contribute to the organization's data strategy and roadmap.
Collaborate with business units to translate data needs into engineering requirements.
Participate in sprint planning and agile ceremonies within the data engineering team.
Support cross-functional risk assessments related to fuel supply continuity and airport operations.
Assist with budget preparation and CAPEX planning for fuel infrastructure and lab equipment upgrades.
Provide subject matter expertise during new airport infrastructure or hydrant system design projects to ensure fueling best practices are included.
Mentor junior staff and coordinate with contractors to ensure quality of outsourced sampling and testing activities.

Required Skills & Competencies

Hard Skills (Technical)

Deep knowledge of jet fuel specifications and standards (ASTM D1655, DEF STAN, JIS, national equivalents), and the ability to interpret certificates of analysis (COAs).
Fuel sampling and chain-of-custody best practices for hydrant systems, tanks, trucks and aircraft refuels.
Laboratory testing proficiency: GC-MS, FTIR, water finding (Karl Fischer or centrifuge), particulate contamination analysis, distillation, flash point, freeze/cryo point testing.
Experience with fuel handling equipment and infrastructure: tank gauging, pipeline and hydrant maintenance, filter separators, and metering systems.
On-spec verification and out-of-spec management, including corrective action plans, supplier hold/reject procedures and dispositioning of nonconforming fuel.
Understanding of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) properties, blending protocols, certification pathways and lifecycle considerations.
Familiarity with JIG (Joint Inspection Group), ISAGO/ISAGO-adjacent audits, ISO 9001 and other quality management frameworks as applied to fuel operations.
Hazardous materials (HAZMAT) management and regulatory compliance knowledge (DOT, ICAO TI, IATA, EPA and local hazardous waste regulations).
Data analysis and reporting skills — advanced Excel, KPI dashboards, basic SQL or BI tools to analyze fuel quality trends and inventory reconciliations.
ERP / fuel accounting system experience (SAP, Oracle, Enverus, or specialized fuel management software) for purchase orders, invoicing, and inventory control.
Fuel additive dosing and blending experience, including compatibility checks and dosing system controls.
Familiarity with fuel cold flow properties and mitigation techniques for cold-weather operations (freeze point testing, fuel heating, additives).
Inspection and calibration knowledge for lab instruments and field meters; managing vendor calibration schedules and traceability.
Incident investigation tools and methodologies (root cause analysis, 5 Whys, fishbone diagrams) to resolve quality and contamination incidents.

Soft Skills

Strong analytical thinking with meticulous attention to detail for quality assurance and laboratory result interpretation.
Excellent written and verbal communication skills to prepare technical reports, regulatory documentation and to liaise with suppliers, airlines and authorities.
Problem-solving mindset with the ability to lead cross-functional incident response and corrective action implementation.
Project management and organizational skills to manage audits, infrastructure upgrades and multi-stakeholder initiatives.
Stakeholder management and negotiation skills for supplier contracts, vendor relationships and internal alignment with operations and procurement.
Ability to train, mentor and influence frontline fueling crews and contractors on quality and safety best practices.
Adaptability in a 24/7 operations environment; able to respond to urgent quality incidents and support off-hours investigations.

Education & Experience

Educational Background

Minimum Education:

Bachelor's degree in Chemical Engineering, Petroleum Engineering, Chemistry, Aviation Technology, Mechanical Engineering or related technical field.

Preferred Education:

Master's degree in Chemical Engineering, Fuel Science, Aerospace Engineering, or an MBA with relevant technical experience.
Professional certifications such as Certified Fuel Specialist, HAZMAT certification, or internal JIG auditor training are advantageous.

Relevant Fields of Study:

Chemical Engineering
Petroleum Engineering
Analytical Chemistry
Aviation/Aerospace Technology
Environmental Science / Occupational Health & Safety

Experience Requirements

Typical Experience Range: 3–8 years of direct experience in aviation fuel quality, fuel laboratory analysis, or fuel supply chain operations.

Preferred:

5+ years experience in aviation fuel quality assurance or a fuel supplier/hangar/airport fuel operations environment.
Demonstrated experience managing fuel quality incidents, supplier audits and implementing corrective actions.
Experience working with Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) projects or fuel blending programs is highly desirable.

If you want this tailored to a specific employer type (airline, airport, fuel supplier, military), or to match a seniority level (junior, senior, lead), tell me which and I will adapt the responsibilities, skills and experience to fit that context.