The world’s first transatlantic flight powered only by so-called sustainable aviation fuel will leave London’s Heathrow Airport next year for JFK in New York, a British government statement said.
In 2023, at a date yet to be determined, a Virgin Atlantic Boeing 787 aircraft powered by Rolls-Royce engines will take off powered only by “sustainable aviation fuel (SAF),” such as waste oil or grease, like cooking oil, the release said.
“When they replace kerosene, SAFs can reduce carbon emissions by some 70%,” the statement added.
The UK government will invest up to £1 million to support this route.
The flight organizers call it “net carbon neutral” because they will also buy carbon credits linked to projects that will absorb equivalent volumes of CO2 in the future.
So-called sustainable aviation fuels do emit CO2 during their combustion, with the reduction in greenhouse gas emissions occurring mainly during the production phase.
“Not only will SAF be instrumental in decarbonising aviation, but it could create a UK industry with an annual turnover of £2.4 billion by 2040, which could generate 5,200 UK jobs by 2035,” comments the Department for Transport (DfT).
“Aviation is one of the most difficult sectors to decarbonize and without urgent collaborative action it could be one of the most greenhouse gas emitting sectors by 2050,” when the UK is committed to carbon neutrality, the DfT continues.
He recalls that today companies are allowed to use a maximum of 50% SAF in their fuel, mixed with kerosene, on commercial flights.
SAF’s 100% flight is intended to show the potential for decarbonization on long-haul flights and “move us one step closer to zero-carbon aviation.”
The DfT press release notes that a 100% SAF-powered flight has already been made by the Royal Air Force (RAF) last month.
Still in its infancy, SAF fuel production is expected to triple this year worldwide, according to the international industry organization IATA, to reach at least 300 million liters in 2022, after having already grown significantly from some 25 million liters in
2019, according to Iata.
A tiny amount compared to the approximately 413 billion liters of aviation fuel consumed that year, according to figures from the International Energy Agency.
Another notable difficulty is that SAF fuels are about four times more expensive than kerosene.
