Airlines reach milestone: 500,000 SAF-powered flights

The aviation industry has reached an important milestone: by late June airlines had collectively operated just under 499,000 flights powered by SAF. According to numbers from Air Transport Action Group (ATAG), the milestone of 500,000 flights was reached in July.

Reaching 500,000 was not a goal in itself, the journey towards decarbonization is to be continued. The event does show that the aviation industry is making steady progress on the Sustainable Aviation (SAF) roll-out.

According to estimates by IATA, there are currently just over 200 SAF-powered commercial flights per day. The number could have been much higher, Centre for Aviation reports: “The linked issues of price and availability have been impediments to progress.” Global SAF production was approximately 300 million litres in 2022 – less than 0.1% of global jet fuel demand.

Since the first test flight with SAF in 2008, more than 50 airlines have powered a flight with their aircraft using SAF. There is an increasing share of SAF flights that are regular, scheduled services. A number of major airlines – including Air France-KLM and Delta Air Lines – “are leading the charge to turn SAF-powered flights from a novelty to a regular occurrence”, Centre for Aviation states.