Photo: Airbus
SAF (Sustainable Aviation Fuel) is no good if aviation operators don't actually use it. Airlines need to be encouraged to use increasingly larger quantities of SAF in the long run. Both legislative initiatives and industry strategies play an important role in this. As a global leader in the research and use of alternative fuel, Airbus is doing its part in an innovative way.
Green jet fuel is almost unanimously considered the best solution for lowering emissions that is available right now, and that doesn't require modifications to the aircraft or engine. At the same time, SAF currently has two major drawbacks – limited supply and high costs. The SAF industry is still at the beginning, with only a handful of producers worldwide, which makes this alternative fuel an expensive option for most airlines.
Airbus is tackling these issues through various projects. The most recent one focuses on ferry flights. Before starting commercial operations, a new airliner uses a significant amount of fuel (with a negative environmental footprint) just to travel from the production facility to its new home.
This journey can be very long, as was the case for Indigo, whose new Airbus A320neo had to fly from Toulouse, France, to Delhi, India. This flight took place at the beginning of this month and was special because it marked the launch of a new Airbus project. The Airbus delivery team supplied 5% pure SAF for this Indigo ferry flight and will do the same for all customers taking their new aircraft from Toulouse.
This isn't a first for the aviation giant. Its delivery centers in Mobile, Alabama, and Tianjin, China, have been offering SAF in different concentrations to the customers ferrying new aircraft from those locations.
Things worked so well that Airbus is now extending this offer to its European delivery centers. Toulouse already joined the club earlier this month, with the Indigo ferry flight on July 3. Hamburg, Germany, will be next, starting in September. All customers taking their aircraft home from these locations will have access to 5% pure SAF, free of charge, offered by Airbus.
By the end of this year, Airbus wants to reach 10% pure SAF in the fuel mix for all of its operations. Over the next years, it plans to supply customers with SAF at all of its delivery centers, powering all ferry flights with clean fuel.
At the same time, Airbus is working with various SAF producers to ensure this supply. One of them is LanzaJet, a bioenergy tech company that will build a brand-new production facility in Queensland, Australia. The other one is Neste, claiming to be the largest SAF producer in the world right now.
The entire Airbus range is already certified for a 50% SAF blend. By the end of this decade, it's set to become officially compatible with 100% unblended SAF.
Airbus is tackling these issues through various projects. The most recent one focuses on ferry flights. Before starting commercial operations, a new airliner uses a significant amount of fuel (with a negative environmental footprint) just to travel from the production facility to its new home.
This journey can be very long, as was the case for Indigo, whose new Airbus A320neo had to fly from Toulouse, France, to Delhi, India. This flight took place at the beginning of this month and was special because it marked the launch of a new Airbus project. The Airbus delivery team supplied 5% pure SAF for this Indigo ferry flight and will do the same for all customers taking their new aircraft from Toulouse.
This isn't a first for the aviation giant. Its delivery centers in Mobile, Alabama, and Tianjin, China, have been offering SAF in different concentrations to the customers ferrying new aircraft from those locations.
Things worked so well that Airbus is now extending this offer to its European delivery centers. Toulouse already joined the club earlier this month, with the Indigo ferry flight on July 3. Hamburg, Germany, will be next, starting in September. All customers taking their aircraft home from these locations will have access to 5% pure SAF, free of charge, offered by Airbus.
By the end of this year, Airbus wants to reach 10% pure SAF in the fuel mix for all of its operations. Over the next years, it plans to supply customers with SAF at all of its delivery centers, powering all ferry flights with clean fuel.
At the same time, Airbus is working with various SAF producers to ensure this supply. One of them is LanzaJet, a bioenergy tech company that will build a brand-new production facility in Queensland, Australia. The other one is Neste, claiming to be the largest SAF producer in the world right now.
The entire Airbus range is already certified for a 50% SAF blend. By the end of this decade, it's set to become officially compatible with 100% unblended SAF.
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