It’s no secret that we need to explore ways to make air travel more sustainable. In the US alone, Air travel accounts for 10 percent greenhouse gas emissions, and as the number of flights taking off every day increases That percentage may increase. To combat this, aircraft builders and engine manufacturers have begun experimenting with new ways to power flight, including electric motor and even hydrogen-powered engine. But now, a British airline will test its first transatlantic flight powered by something called Sustainable Aviation Fuels (SAF).
On November 28, a Virgin Atlantic Dream plane Boeing 787 will take off from London’s Heathrow Airport on a flight to JFK in New York. But instead of two traditional jet-powered Rolls-Royce Trent 1000 engines, the plane will be fueled for the entire trip with a sustainable alternative.
This will be an industry first, as currently airlines are only allowed to operate flights with a maximum of 50% sustainable fuel mix with conventional jet fuel. For the test flight, Virgin Atlantic has partnered with Air BP and Virent, which will deliver a new fuel that will cut CO2 emissions by up to 70% over its lifecycle.
To create my SAF, Air BP uses materials such as used cooking oil and household food waste. The waste is collected, refined, and turned by BP into fuel that can be mixed with jet fuel as needed. It is therefore often referred to as a “drop-in” fuel, which cuts some of the emissions from air travel.
For Virgin Atlantic flights, however, this fuel will not be blended with traditional kerosene fuel, but will instead be used alone – albeit blended with 12% aromatics, helping it meet the flight’s performance needs.
“SAF is currently the most viable option to help us meet the industry’s net-zero ambitions and in the short to medium term it will be the only option for long haul flights,” said Andreea Moyes, Air BP’s global director of aviation sustainability. “Moving our industry and policy towards 100% SAF usage is critical as we work with key stakeholders to help decarbonise the aviation industry.”
Before the flight took off, Virgin Atlantic and Rolls Royce performed extensive ground tests on the fuel in the Rolls-Royce Trent engines that power the 787 Dreamliner. Virgin’s test also follows an AirAsia test project in India, which is the first flight ever made. offered only by SAF.
While both the India test and this transatlantic flight rely solely on SAF, current targets only require airlines to fuel their fleets with 10% SAF by 2030 in the UK. In the United States, the airline industry hopes to reach 3 billion gallons of SAF by 2030. The Biden administration also announced that by 2050, all domestic flights in the United States will be powered by SAF.
In peak in 2019, the global commercial aviation industry consumed about 95 billion gallons of jet fuel during the year. In the US, commercial airlines sold out 1.5 million barrels of aviation fuel every day last year.
