To help prevent misfuelling, Air BP launches Airfield Automation digital technology in Africa

​Air BP returned last week to the 4th Aviation Africa Summit and Exhibition in Kigali, Rwanda as sponsor and exhibitor. The company reinforced its commitment to Africa and highlighted the rollout of its new Airfield Automation digital technology recently installed at nine locations across South Africa and Mozambique. 

The cloud-based platform is designed to prevent misfuelling by enhancing safety, reliability and compliance in airport fuelling operations, as well as to provide data in real time to airline customers. Importantly, it strengthens safety barriers and mitigates risks during the fuelling process. It is the first commercially deployed system in the world to provide an engineering barrier to actively help prevent misfuelling.

The platform consolidates the data related to airport fuelling operations and works via an app on a handheld device in the fuelling vehicles. The appropriately named ‘safe2go’ app captures fuel volume readings and provides fuel grade checks to add an additional misfuelling barrier. It then electronically captures customer details which are confirmed with an electronic signature from the pilot or airline. By using this automated, end-to-end, paperless system, accuracy is enhanced and any potential miskeying errors minimised.

Aside from the enhanced safety barriers, aircraft operators will also benefit from faster, more comprehensive and more accurate fuelling and delivery data. The cloud-based technology will enable Air BP to offer increasingly integrated information to customers, such as delivery records and precise delivery timings.

Anthony Leon, general manager, Southern Africa, Air BP, who attended Aviation Africa, comments: “Africa is an important market for us andwe plan to continue to grow our business here. We are pleased to have successfully installed Airfield Automation in Mozambique and South Africa.  Misfuelling is one of the biggest risks we face in our industry and in particular at locations serving General Aviation aircraft. Our new technology provides an engineering barrier to stop it happening which is good news all round.”

Air BP has been present in Africa for more than 75 years. The company currently supplies fuel at 40 network locations and works with around 50 customers across all three sectors (Commercial, General and Military) at nine locations in South Africa; 10 in Egypt; seven in Tunisia; seven in Mozambique; two in Morocco; two in Cape Verde and one each in Mauritius, Ivory Coast and Nigeria. The company’s operations in Africa are supported by around 180 employees.