(Image via airlines.iata.org)
Volunteer Writer: Akshit Bagga
Email: abagga@umassd.edu
Imagine an airplane flying on cooking oil and fats and carrying passengers across continents. Virgin Atlantic became the first commercial flight powered by 100% sustainable aviation fuel (SAF).
This accomplishment happened in the Boeing 787 passenger jet. It began flying passengers from London to New York (Flight 100) on Tuesday, 28th November 2023, and landed at JFK International Airport on Tuesday afternoon.
The founder of Virgin Atlantic, Richard Branson, Chief Executive Shai Weiss, and U.K.’s Secretary of State for Transport Mark Harper were among the flyers.
Only last year, after multiple technical reviews, did the U.K.’s Civil Aviation Authority grant permission to Virgin Atlantic, Rolls Royce, Boeing, and their partners to fly on SAF.
SAF is a sustainable aviation fuel, an alternative fuel that reduces airplane emissions and is made from non-petroleum feedstocks. It has chemical properties similar to conventional jet fuel but has a comparatively smaller carbon footprint.
Air BP and Virent were the two companies involved in the supply of 60 tons of SAF, which was required for the Virgin Atlantic Flight 100. The SAF used for this flight was produced as a mixture of hydro-processed Esters, Fatty Acid (HEFA) pathways, and synthetic aromatic kerosene (SAK). The SAF has an 88% to 12% blend ratio of the two.
Today, SAF represents less than 0.1% of global jet fuel volumes. Usual standards allow for a 50% SAF blend in commercial jet engines. As per the press release by Virgin Atlantic, SAF has a significant role in decarbonizing long-haul aviation and is a step towards Net Zero 2050.
The fuel helps to reduce up to 70% of CO2 (carbon dioxide emission). They also mention that with governments’ and industries’ efforts, they want to create a UK SAF industry and work to meet the 10% SAF target by 2030. It would also lead to an estimated contribution of £1.8 billion in Gross Added Value to the UK and create more than 10,000 jobs.
Richard Branson assured, “The world will always assume something can’t be done until you do it. The spirit of innovation is getting out there and trying to prove that we can do things better for everyone’s benefit.”
Virgin Atlantic’s Flight100 took off from London’s Heathrow Airport at 11:49 GMT on November 28th and landed at New York’s John F Kennedy International Airport at 14:05 EST (19:05 GMT) on the same day. The plane landed 35 minutes earlier than its scheduled arrival time of 14:40 EST.
United States Deputy Transportation Secretary Polly Trottenberg was among those who welcomed the flight.
United Kingdom Secretary of State for Transport Mark Harper mused, “If you hadn’t known it was 100% SAF flight, no one would have noticed.”
The flight covered approximately 3500 miles between the two destinations over the Atlantic Ocean.
Aviation fuel and conventional fuel differ in pricing. Traditional jet fuel costs about $1094/ton in 2022, and SAF costs $2437/ton. With the increased production levels and constant effort towards improving the feedstock mix required to produce SAF, we can expect the prices of SAF to decrease.
With modern science, research, and technology, these steps seem like respectable progress. However, there is still more that needs to be achieved to make the world more sustainable.