Aviation
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Sustainable Travel
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EasyJet is working with Wright Electric on an electric aircraft that could enter service in 2030. Photo: EasyJet
“Zero emission electric cars are already a reality on our roads, but in the 2030s, we could be flying on holiday on electric or hydrogenpowered zero emission aircraft too.” THE STICKING POINTS But the sticking points for the whole industry when it comes to SAF are their higher cost, and (limited) availability. “We know that we will have to continuously increase the level of SAF that we are putting in our aircraft,” Air France CEO Anne Rigail says, noting that the airline would need to use more than 10 per cent SAF by 2030 to meet its goals. The challenge will be finding sufficient supply, Rigail says, and the solution may lie beyond biofuels. “We know that we need more volume and that for bio-SAF it will be limited. The big question is: will energy providers be able to invest in a different type of fuel – will we be able to have synthetic fuel,” she explains. Industry players agree synthetic fuels will play an important role in decarbonising the sector. “Synthetic drop-in fuels are an essential pathway to enable net-zero
CO2 emissions for the large existing aircraft fleets in operation today,” says Max Brown, VP Technology at GKN Aerospace. “This is a fundamental step in decarbonisation and is necessary for new aircraft until new technologies, e.g. hydrogen aircraft, become available,” Brown says. Boosting the use of SAF, whether biofuels or synthetic fuels, will require the cooperation of fuel producers, airlines, airports, and governments, which need to encourage investment in the emerging sector. Many are already on the case: British Airways, for example, has teamed up with sustainable fuel producer Velocys, while in May, in a bid to boost investment and knowledge, the British government launched an ambitious challenge to operate the first zero emission transatlantic demonstrator flight by 2023. Air France’s sustainable flights also showcased its new Airbus A350 and A220 airJune 2022
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Issue 03
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