The Business Aviation Coalition for Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF Coalition) has released an informational guide detailing how industry leaders can incorporate SAF into their operations and accelerate the adoption of low-carbon fuels, while reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

The new guide, titled Fueling the Future, serves as an educational and informational resource about the practicalities of SAF development, industry adoption and pending expansion of supply and use, primarily from the perspectives of the business aviation community.

SAF blending components are made from bio-based or other circular-economy feedstock sources. On a gallon-per-gallon basis, these low-carbon components often reduce net lifecycle CO2 emissions in excess of 50 per cent versus conventional jet fuel. Industry innovators are additionally planning to produce SAF blending components with deeper reductions and in some cases more than 100 per cent, making the fuels carbon negative. SAF is a proven and trusted replacement for traditional jet fuel that will help lower the industry's carbon footprint. SAF has been used continuously at select airports since 2016 and its production is expected to scale significantly during the next five years.

“The single-largest potential reduction in aviation's greenhouse gas emissions, and the key to reaching our goals, will come about through the broad adoption of sustainable aviation fuel in place of the current conventional jet fuel,” the coalition concludes in the guide.

The SAF Coalition, which includes the Commercial Aviation Alternative Fuels Initiative (CAAFI), the European Business Aviation Association (EBAA), the General Aviation Manufacturers Association (GAMA), the International Business Aviation Council (IBAC), the National Air Transportation Association (NATA) and the National Business Aviation Association (NBAA), developed the guide.

The coalition's steering committee includes dozens of aviation businesses, representing every point in the SAF development-and-supply chain, and all of which provided real-world expertise in the development of the guide. A list of SAF Coalition steering committee companies is provided on the group's website homepage.

The SAF Coalition's guide builds upon a host of initiatives to educate industry leaders, policymakers and others on the benefits and viability of SAF. For example, in January 2020, the coalition introduced SAF for business aviation consumption at Zurich Airport, in conjunction with the World Economic Forum. Similar previous events were held at airports in Van Nuys, California, Farnborough, UK, Geneva and Las Vegas, Nevada.

“It is very encouraging to see the continuously increasing interest from the business aviation community to use SAF to address sustainability goals,” comments Steve Csonka, CAAFI executive director. “Although a modest user of the worldwide production of jet fuel, its exuberant interest in acquiring supply will clearly help accelerate SAF production ramp-up, one of the entire aviation industry's key needs. We hope this guide helps amplify the opportunity and response.”

“The second edition of the Sustainable Aviation Fuel Guide is a testament to our continued efforts toward a lower-carbon future,” adds EBAA secretary general Athar Husain Khan. “Raising awareness to further fuel the demand for SAF is crucial to overcoming challenges such as the large geographical spread required for our sector. This guide is an important tool to help us spread that message.”