The test flight – which took off from Malmö, a coastal city in southern Sweden to Bromma near Stockholm, taking around 1 hour and 20 minutes – was powered by 100% SAF supplied by Neste. The company reports that when used in neat form, its SAF reduces greenhouse gas emissions over the fuel’s life cycle by up to 80% compared to fossil jet fuel use.

The flight was the latest in a series of successful ground and flight tests on the ATR 72-600 prototype aircraft performed at the beginning of 2022, including flights with 100% SAF in one engine. This most recent flight was the first time it was done with 100% SAF in two engines.

Commenting on the test flight, ATR CEO Stefano Bortoli, said: ‘Today is an historic day for aviation. After more than a century of commercial flights powered by kerosene, we are at the dawn of a new era… The flight represents a true milestone for the entire aviation industry as it shows that this technology works and can be promptly adopted by many in our industry to speed up the transition to low-emission aviation.’

‘SAF plays a key role in achieving aviation’s emission reduction goals,’ added Jonathan Wood, Neste’s Vice President Europe, Renewable Aviation. ‘When used in neat form, at 100% concentration as on this test flight, Neste MY Sustainable Aviation Fuel reduces greenhouse gas emissions over its life cycle by up to 80% compared to fossil jet fuel use and provides additionally non-CO₂ benefits through significantly reduced particulate emissions, among others. As a drop-in fuel, it can be used in existing aircraft engines and is compatible with current airport fuel infrastructure. Test flights like this show it is possible to safely fly on 100% SAF and help accelerate the adoption of SAF in aviation.’

New blockchain powered solutions for scaling SAF
In related news, Shell, Accenture and American Express Global Business Travel (Amex GBT) have announced the launch of Avelia, reported to be one of the world’s first blockchain-powered digital SAF book-and-claim solutions for business travel.

Offering around 1mn gallons of SAF – enough to power almost 15,000 individual business traveller flights from London to New York – the book-and-claim system allows travellers to pay for SAF and claim the benefits, even if SAF is not available at their departure airport. SAF will instead be fed into another aircraft in an airport where available.

The pilot phase of the programme aims to demonstrate the credibility of the book-and-claim model, using blockchain technology to ensure secured allocation of SAF’s environmental attributes to companies and airlines after the fuel has been delivered into the fuel network. With Avelia, airlines and business customers can simultaneously reduce emissions in their respective scopes, while ensuring transparency and accountability by avoiding issues such as double-counting, state the three companies.

Commenting on the announcement, Jan Toschka, President, Shell Aviation, said: ‘SAF is a key enabler of decarbonisation in the aviation industry, and it’s available today. However, it’s currently scarce and costs more than conventional jet fuel. Avelia will help trigger demand for SAF at scale, providing confidence to suppliers like us to further increase investment in production, and in turn helping to lower the price point for these fuels.’

Shell has committed to purchasing the environmental attributes equivalent to 100,000 gallons of SAF over the pilot phase of the Avelia programme. It will increase this commitment as soon as more SAF is available, to achieve its ambition to abate 45% of Shell’s corporate travel emissions through SAF by 2030.

UK to produce fleet of helium-filled airships 
Meanwhile, Hybrid Air Vehicles (HAV), a UK-based sustainable aircraft technology company, has made an aircraft reservation agreement with one of the largest regional airlines in Europe, Air Nostrum, for HAV’s pioneering Airlander 10 hybrid airship.

Air Nostrum has reserved 10, 100-seat airships for delivery from 2026 onwards, with initial operations to place across Spain. The aircraft are to be manufactured in South Yorkshire, UK, beginning this year, creating thousands of skilled jobs in green aerospace technologies and supporting levelling up across the region.

The Airlander hybrid aircraft combines buoyant lift from helium with aerodynamic lift and vectored thrust from its engines, which is reported to be significantly more efficient compared to conventional fixed and rotary wing aircraft. Using the buoyant lift of helium reduces the fuel burn required just to keep the aircraft airborne – most of the airframe’s weight is countered by the helium’s buoyancy.

In its current configuration, the Airlander 10 produces approximately 75% fewer emissions than comparable aircraft in similar roles, claims HAV. However, the company is currently developing electric motors with the aim of delivering a hybrid-electric Airlander 10 from 2025 that will provide a 90% reduction in emissions. In time, all four of Airlander 10’s engines will be electric. This will give future customers the option for a zero-emissions aircraft, in service by 2030, states HAV.

Commenting on the news, UK Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy Kwasi Kwarteng, said: ‘Hybrid aircraft could play an important role as we transition to cleaner forms of aviation, and it is wonderful to see the UK right at the forefront of the technology’s development. This agreement enhances the possibility of the revolutionary, British-made and designed Airlander 10 aircraft flying across Spanish skies. It is more proof of how the UK’s businesses are embracing new technology to drive growth and support high skilled UK jobs.’