United Airlines operates first SAF passenger flight
The future of jet fuel is here
In December 2021 United Airlines made a major step forward in that pursuit when it flew a regular passenger flight from Chicago to Washington, D.C., on 100 percent SAF. Sort of. In truth, only one engine operated on SAF while the other used traditional jet fuel. The reason was more practical than technological.
Today, airlines are only authorized to operate using a maximum of 50 percent SAF. Anything beyond that is going to take more significantly more testing, which is already happening. This flight and many others have demonstrated that SAF is potentially a drop-in replacement for traditional jet fuel, but understandably, full approval won’t come for a few years.
SAF comes from a variety of sources, including municipal waste, algae, biomass, used oils, and even carbon dioxide. It all adds up to massive savings in greenhouse gas emissions. Some estimate that using SAF will reduce global airline emissions by 80 percent.
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