Photo: United Airlines
The journey to 100% green flights is slow and tedious. Still, United Airlines, the largest airline in the world, continues to walk on this pioneering path. It supports zero-emission flights through various means, including the support of electric air taxis and hydrogen propulsion systems, but these solutions lay somewhere in the distant future. On the other hand, SAF (Sustainable Aviation Fuel) is the most reliable solution that can be used right now, with immediate benefits.
United made a bold estimate related to using SAF for 2023, claiming that it will grow ten times more than in 2019. It's triple even compared to last year, which would already be an outstanding achievement. This is what 10 million gallons of SAF mean for United.
At the same time, the operator admits this is a minuscule quantity of its overall fuel requirements. It doesn't seem very important in terms of quantity, but it's actually a big step for ramping up the regular use of SAF in commercial aviation.
The airline is also adding two more locations to its SAF network. Los Angeles International Airport is the first one where United introduced SAF seven years ago. Schiphol Airport in Amsterdam joined last year. San Francisco Airport will also start benefitting from the use of green jet fuel in 2023, followed by London Heathrow Airport later this year.
Out of the 10 million gallons planned for this year, San Francisco Airport will use 1.5 million for departing flights. The rest will be divided between the previous two locations. Deliveries have already kicked off last month, and the main supplier is Neste.
This Dutch SAF producer claims to be the largest worldwide in terms of capacity, with facilities on three continents. The Neste My Sustainable Aviation Fuel is derived entirely from renewable waste and raw materials, claiming to reduce GHG (Greenhouse Gas) emissions by up to 80% throughout its lifecycle.
If you're wondering who is paying for this not-so-affordable green fuel, it's not United alone. The program has created a program called "Eco-Skies Alliance," where other industry partners are invited to share the burden of transitioning to cleaner alternatives. It's already been two years since the launch of this successful program, resulting in the purchase of almost 15 million gallons from different sources.
On its part, United is also investing in SAF producers because low availability continues to be one of the major hurdles related to the use of green jet fuel. Even the US Department of Energy concluded that America has enough feedstock resources to produce sufficient SAF for the entire aviation industry, not to mention all the other potential sources (like algae and CO2). However, the SAF industry is still growing slowly at this early stage. Mutual support can help accelerate things for suppliers as well as the main operators, including United.
At the same time, the operator admits this is a minuscule quantity of its overall fuel requirements. It doesn't seem very important in terms of quantity, but it's actually a big step for ramping up the regular use of SAF in commercial aviation.
The airline is also adding two more locations to its SAF network. Los Angeles International Airport is the first one where United introduced SAF seven years ago. Schiphol Airport in Amsterdam joined last year. San Francisco Airport will also start benefitting from the use of green jet fuel in 2023, followed by London Heathrow Airport later this year.
Out of the 10 million gallons planned for this year, San Francisco Airport will use 1.5 million for departing flights. The rest will be divided between the previous two locations. Deliveries have already kicked off last month, and the main supplier is Neste.
This Dutch SAF producer claims to be the largest worldwide in terms of capacity, with facilities on three continents. The Neste My Sustainable Aviation Fuel is derived entirely from renewable waste and raw materials, claiming to reduce GHG (Greenhouse Gas) emissions by up to 80% throughout its lifecycle.
If you're wondering who is paying for this not-so-affordable green fuel, it's not United alone. The program has created a program called "Eco-Skies Alliance," where other industry partners are invited to share the burden of transitioning to cleaner alternatives. It's already been two years since the launch of this successful program, resulting in the purchase of almost 15 million gallons from different sources.
On its part, United is also investing in SAF producers because low availability continues to be one of the major hurdles related to the use of green jet fuel. Even the US Department of Energy concluded that America has enough feedstock resources to produce sufficient SAF for the entire aviation industry, not to mention all the other potential sources (like algae and CO2). However, the SAF industry is still growing slowly at this early stage. Mutual support can help accelerate things for suppliers as well as the main operators, including United.
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