The world’s first transatlantic flight powered solely by so-called sustainable aviation fuel will depart London’s Heathrow airport next year for JFK in New York, a British government statement said on Friday.
In 2023, on an as yet unspecified date, a Virgin Atlantic Boeing 787 aircraft equipped with Rolls-Royce engines will take off powered solely by non-fossil aviation fuel (Sustainable Aviation Fuel, SAF)”, such as used oils or greases, such as cooking oils, describes this statement.”When they replace kerosene, SAF can reduce carbon emissions by 70%,” the statement added.British will invest up to £1m to support this journey.
“SAF will be fundamental in the decarbonization of aviation
The flight organizers call it “net carbon neutral” because they will also buy carbon credits tied to projects that will absorb equivalent volumes of CO2 in the future. In fact, the so-called sustainable aviation fuels emit CO2 during their combustion, and the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions takes place mainly during the production phase.
“SAF will not only be instrumental in decarbonising aviation, but can create a UK industry with an annual turnover of £2.4bn by 2040, potentially generating 5,200 UK jobs by 2035 “, comments the Department of Transport (DfT) . “Aviation is one of the most difficult sectors to decarbonise and, without urgent collaborative action, could be one of the most greenhouse gas emitting sectors by 2050,” when the UK commits to achieving carbon neutrality. , the DfT continues.
Remember that today companies have the right to use a maximum of 50% SAF in their fuel, mixed with kerosene, on commercial flights. SAF’s 100% flight wants to show the decarbonization potential of long-haul flights and “take us one step closer to zero-carbon aviation.”
Strong increase in SAF production
The DfT press release notes that the Royal Air Force (RAF) already carried out a 100% SAF-powered flight last month. Still embryonic, the production of SAF fuels should, however, triple this year in the world, according to the international sectoral organization IATA to reach at least 300 million liters in 2022, after having increased considerably from around 25 million liters in 2019. , according to the Iata.
A tiny amount compared to the approximately 413,000 million liters of aviation fuel that were consumed that year, according to figures from the International Energy Agency. Another notable difficulty: SAF fuels cost about four times more than kerosene.
Source: BFM TV
