Program Overview & Pricing – Sustainable Flight Department Accreditation Program

The process of obtaining Sustainable Flight Department Accreditation follows these steps.

• Complete the 2024 Application Form
• Develop a sustainability strategy
• Gather data and documentation
• Submit documentation and payment
• Business aviation entity is audited
• Accreditation is awarded if the audit verifies the business aviation has met accreditation requirements.

For more information on these steps, review the information below. For more information, contact NBAA’s Sustainability Team at sustainability@nbaa.org.

Complete the 2024 Application Form

Use this form to begin the application process for Sustainable Flight Department Accreditation for 2024. Submitting this form will notify NBAA about your application, allow you to pay the application fee and give you access to forms and guidance for providing documentation for individual program elements. Applicants may select multiple focus areas.

Developing a Sustainability Strategy

NBAA has developed a Overarching Sustainability Strategy – Application Form and Guidance Document to outline elements that are required for accreditation and effectively support the goal of reducing GHG emissions, particularly CO2, with the goal of carbon neutrality by 2040. The program emphasizes the adoption of diverse sustainability strategies, acknowledging the unique nature of business aviation operations.

To initially achieve any of the four accreditations (Flight, Operations, Ground Support, Infrastructure) a company must document a minimum of 10% CO2 emissions reduction or offsetting as compared to their baseline year.

Renewing accreditations will require moving to a higher tier to demonstrate progress towards carbon neutrality.

Note: Accredited entities will be required to demonstrate at least a 20% CO2 emissions reduction over their baseline year at the time of renewal (Tier 1). While it is not required to move up a tier upon each subsequent renewal, the program was created with that pathway in mind.

Sustainability strategy documentation should include elements that address the following topics:

• Corporate Values and Goals
• Governance
• People and Education Programs
• Sustainability Recognition Initiatives
• External Partners and Partner/Vendor Analysis
• Community Partners
• Emerging Technologies

These supporting documents should be submitted following the instructions outlined in the Overarching Sustainability Strategy – Application Form and Guidance Document.

Gathering Data and Documentation

In addition to providing overarching sustainability strategy documentation, accreditation applicants are required to provide evidence to demonstrate a reduction in CO2 emissions over their baseline year. Each accreditation category has its own stringent requirements, which are outlined in the following guidance documents:

• Flight – Application Form and Guidance Document
• Operations – Application Form and Guidance Document
• Ground Support – Application Form and Guidance Document
• Infrastructure – Application Form and Guidance Document

Applicants may choose to pursue accreditation in multiple categories.

For additional information and tools, including Excel-based tracking logs for fuel, employee air travel and infrastructure energy use, review the full list of Sustainable Flight Department Accreditation Program resources.

Submitting Documentation and Payment

There will be two review cycles for 2024 applications.

Supporting documentation and payments must must be received by the deadlines below:

• Cycle 1 Deadline: June 30, 2024
• Cycle 2 Deadline: Sept. 16, 2024

Supporting documentation should be submitted by email to sustainability@nbaa.org.

Payment can be submitted through 2024 Application Form or the NBAA online store through the links below.

Pricing

Accreditation application fee’s cover administrative work and desktop audits. At this time in-person audits do not incur additional costs.

Accreditation Audit Process

All Sustainable Flight Department Accreditation applications will undergo a virtual audit of their submitted sustainability strategy and supporting evidence to ensure that they meet the stringent requirements of the program.

In-person audits will be conducted for selected entities to validate sustainability processes and documentation. There will be no additional fees for in-person audits at this time.

For questions about the audit process, email sustainability@nbaa.org.

Awarding Accreditation

After completing the audit process, successful applicants will be awarded Sustainable Flight Department Accreditation.

Accredited companies will be announced in a NBAA press release, recognized at the 2024 NBAA Business Aviation Convention & Exhibition (NBAA-BACE) and listed on the directory of accredited companies on the NBAA website.

Accredited companies may choose to keep their accreditation anonymous, but companies are encouraged to share the news of their successful sustainability efforts to encourage other in the business aviation community to follow their lead.