Jan. 19, 2023
A recent webinar sponsored by the Pacific Northwest Business Aviation Association (PNBAA) highlighted efforts to promote sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), as well as the challenges facing wider usage in the U.S. aviation industry.
The industry envisions producing 3 billion gallons of domestic SAF by 2030, and 35 billion gallons by 2050. Producers have considerable work ahead to meet those goals since current SAF production levels are hovering around 5 million gallons annually, in part because there are only two SAF producers in the U.S.
“By the end of 2022, some 12-14% of the SAF being consumed in the U.S [was] being poured into business aviation airplanes,” noted Keith Sawyer, manager of alternative fuels at AvFuel Corp.
Stewart D’Leon, NBAA director of environmental and technical operations told attendees, “It’s important to uptake as much [SAF] as we can, to send those demand signals to the producers. But I think it’s equally important to send those signals to your FBOs or your direct fuel provider that we want the fuel.”
In looking ahead to the upcoming FAA Reauthorization bill, D’Leon said, “Our government affairs team is working on what efforts can be made to push the production of SAF from an FAA perspective.” D’Leon also pointed to NBAA’s work to promote association members’ use of SAF through its Sustainable Flight Department Accreditation program, which identifies business aviation entities meeting exceptional environmental sustainability standards. Learn more about the program.
D’Leon also highlighted the Business Aviation Coalition for Sustainable Aviation Fuel’s website as a valuable resource for those who want to learn more about SAF.