United Airlines plans to use 37,85 million litres of Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) this year– about triple the amount it used last year and 10 times more than in 2019.
As part of the plan, United will begin using a blend of SAF on flights departing from San Francisco International Airport, and intends to use a SAF blend later this year at Heathrow.
It has been using SAF blends at Los Angeles International Airport since 2016 and at Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport since 2022.
The SAF used on United's flights is paid for in part through the company's Eco-Skies Alliance programme, designed for participating companies to work together to share the ‘green premium’, or cost associated with purchasing lower emission fuels.
The programme was launched in April 2021, and has collectively contributed toward the purchase of nearly 56,78 million litres of SAF. It has 24 participants, including Audi, Bank of America, Cisco, Corporate Travel Management, DB Schenker, First Eagle Investments, Macquarie Group, and Thermo Fisher Scientific.
United was the first airline to commit to nett-zero carbon emissions by 2050 without relying on traditional carbon offsets. In addition to the Eco-Skies Alliance programme, it has also established the United Airlines Ventures fund. This identifies and invests in companies and technologies that can decarbonise air travel and, from this, the airline recently created the UAV Sustainable Flight Fund.
