Emirates has successfully completed an A380 demonstration flight on 100% Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF), making it the first airline in the world to do so. On November 22, 2023, the aircraft, led by Captains Khalid Binsultan and Philippe Lombet, took off from Dubai International Airport (DXB) with one of four engines that were powered entirely by SAF. This flight served to highlight SAF’s potential as a drop-in replacement that satisfies the technical and chemical requirements of jet fuel while also being a more environmentally friendly option. When compared to traditional jet fuel, SAF can lower carbon emissions by up to 85%* across the fuel’s life cycle.
As governments embrace more comprehensive plans to promote the manufacture and scaling up of SAF, demonstration flights such as this one carried out by Emirates set the path for future standardisation, qualification, and adoption for 100% SAF flying. The A380 demonstration flight adds to the increasing amount of research being conducted by the industry to assess the positive benefits of 100% SAF on aircraft performance by highlighting the performance and compatibility of SAF, making it a safe and dependable fuel source. Currently, the maximum SAF mix restriction for engines used in commercial aircraft is 50%.
The Emirates A380 demonstration flight coincides with the Third International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) Conference on Aviation and Alternative Fuels (CAAF/3), which is being held in Dubai and is expected to bring together representatives from the aviation industry, international organisations, regulatory bodies, and high-ranking government officials who are in charge of making policy-related decisions. The testing, technical evaluations, and data analysis for today’s flight have been completed by committed partners from Airbus, Engine Alliance, Pratt & Whitney, Neve, Virent, and ENOC.
The 100% drop-in SAF utilised on the flight contains renewable aromatics and closely resembles conventional jet fuel characteristics. Drop-in SAF is being implemented on an A380 for the first time, with full interoperability across the aircraft’s existing systems expected. Neste’s HEFA-SPK (hydro processed esters and fatty acids synthetic paraffinic kerosene) and Virent’s HDO-SAK (hydro deoxygenated synthetic aromatic kerosene) provided the SAF for the flight.ENOC assisted in securing the tidy SAF made up of HEFA-SPK and blending it with Sustainable Aviation Kerosene (SAK) at its facilities at Dubai International Airport before the demonstration, as well as performing into-plane services.
One Engine Alliance GP7200 engine ran on 100% SAF, while the other three ran on standard jet fuel. Pratt & Whitney Canada’s PW980 auxiliary power unit (APU) also operated on 100% SAF.
Last week, one A380 Engine Alliance GP7200 engine was subjected to rigorous engine testing utilising 100% SAF, with the goal of proving the engine’s ability to run on the specially blended 100% drop-in SAF without impacting its performance or requiring any modifications. Ground engine testing was done in Dubai’s cutting-edge Emirates Engineering Centre.
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“Emirates is the first passenger airline in the world to operate an A380 with 100% drop-in SAF powering one of four Engine Alliance GP7200 engines. This is another proud moment for Emirates and our partners, as we put words into action with the research into and the trialling of higher concentrations of SAF to eventually lead to industry adoption of 100% SAF flying. This marks another significant step in validating the use of SAF in one of the engines of the A380, a wide-body aircraft with four engines. The growing global demand for lower-emission jet fuel alternatives is there, and the work of producers and suppliers to commercialise SAF and make it available will be critical in the coming years to help Emirates and the wider industry advance our path to lower carbon emissions.”
Adel Al Redha, Chief Operating Officer, Emirates Airline
“Seeing Emirates flying an A380, the world’s largest airliner, powered by an engine running on 100% Sustainable Aviation Fuels is a symbolic moment. These fuels are the most effective way to address CO2 emissions in the aviation industry today and that they are supported increasingly by the world’s leading airlines. SAF is vital to meeting the sector’s target of net-zero emissions in 2050, but needs the backing of the whole industry. At Airbus, we are working to make all our aircraft 100% SAF-capable by 2030. We’re also working with partners to grow the global SAF market in the coming years. Airbus’s purpose as a company is to pioneer sustainable aerospace for a safe and united world. Through our partnership with Emirates, we’re matching ambition with action.”
Julie Kitcher, Airbus Executive Vice President Communications and Corporate Affairs
“Engine Alliance and Emirates have a strong relationship that dates back 15 years to the A380 entry into service. We are proud to power Emirates’ latest SAF demonstration flight – and share a commitment to more sustainable aviation looking forward.”
Amy Johnston, president of Engine Alliance, a 50-50 joint company between GE Aerospace and Pratt & Whitney
“Innovation and collaboration are the keys to reaching net zero carbon emissions by 2050 as this 100% SAF demonstration flight shows. GE Aerospace congratulates Emirates on this major achievement, and we are proud to be powering industry efforts toward a more sustainable future. All GE Aerospace and Engine Alliance engines can operate on approved SAF blends today and through extensive research and testing, GE Aerospace is helping lead the approval and adoption of 100% SAF in the aviation industry.”
Aziz Koleilat, Vice President of Global Sales and Marketing for the Middle East, Eastern Europe, and Turkey at GE Aerospace
“Increasing the use of SAF is critical to achieving the goal of net-zero carbon emissions for aviation, and we are dedicated to ensuring all of Pratt & Whitney’s engines and APUs are compatible with current and future SAF specifications, up to 100%. This in-flight demonstration on an Emirates A380 continues to build momentum towards establishing future standards for 100% SAF, which will help maximize the potential lifecycle emissions reduction for all commercial aircraft flying in the decades ahead.”
Pratt & Whitney Chief Sustainability Officer Graham Webb
“Sustainable Aviation Fuel plays a crucial role in reducing the emissions of air travel, but to fully leverage its decarbonisation potential we need to enable 100% SAF use. Test flights like this Emirates A380-flight using Neste’s SAF are an important step towards 100% SAF certification and we applaud Emirates for its efforts to help pave the way forward. Neste is working closely together with partners to accelerate the availability and use of SAF and we look forward to growing the supply of SAF also to Dubai.”
Jonathan Wood, Vice President Commercial Management and Business Development from the Renewable Aviation business at Neste
“Virent congratulates Emirates Airline on another successful demonstration flight using 100% sustainable aviation fuel featuring Virent’s cleaner-burning BioForm® SAK. With Virent’s plant-based fuels technology, this test flight showed that 100% renewable fuel can meet current specifications and work flawlessly in today’s commercial airline engines. It’s critical that a consortium of companies, like this group, come together to bring sustainable aviation fuel into more widespread use. Virent will continue to collaborate with future-focused companies, and through this collaboration we can continue to reduce emissions and power a more fuel-efficient airline industry.”
Virent President and General Counsel Dave Kettner
“At ENOC, we recognize the importance of working collaboratively with strategic partners and industry experts to realise a more sustainable future for all. We are pleased to have contributed to fueling Emirates’ first 100% sustainable aviation fuel demonstration flight on an Airbus A380, which brings us a step closer to decarbonising the UAE’s aviation sector and transforming it into a regional hub for low carbon aviation fuels. We remain committed to supporting the UAE’s efforts in the aviation sector to ensure continued sustainable growth.”
His Excellency Saif Humaid al Falasi, Group CEO, ENOC
Earlier this year, Emirates carried out the region’s first 100% SAF-powered demonstration flight on a GE90-powered Boeing 777-300ER.
The first Emirates flights using SAF provided by Shell Aviation took off from Dubai International Airport (DXB) last month. Shell provided 315,000 gallons of mixed SAF for the airline’s Dubai hub.
The airline recently expanded its partnership with Neste to deliver approximately 3 million gallons of blended SAF for flights departing from Amsterdam Schiphol and Singapore Changi airports in 2024 and 2025.
Emirates currently uplifts SAF in Norway and France, and the airline is looking for chances to employ SAF at other airports as supply becomes available.
Emirates is involved in several industry and UAE government working groups, as well as continuing stakeholder engagements, to help increase SAF production and supply. Last year, the airline collaborated with the UAE GCAA to develop the UAE’s power-to-liquid (PtL) fuels roadmap, which was driven by the UAE Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure and the World Economic Forum, and has been an active participant in the UAE’s National Sustainable Aviation Fuel Roadmap, which was launched in January 2023 by the Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure and GCAA.
Emirates Places Order for 15 A350s at Dubai Airshow 2023
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Emirates announced an order for 15 additional Airbus A350-900s on 16 November 2023 at the Dubai Airshow 2023, worth US$ 6 billion. This takes Emirates’ total A350 order book to a total of 65 units.
“The A350-900s will add to our fleet mix and we are pleased to announce additional orders for this aircraft type. We plan to deploy our A350s to serve a range of new markets including long-haul missions of up to 15 hours flying time from Dubai. We will work closely with Airbus and Rolls-Royce to ensure our aircraft deliver the best possible operating efficiency and flying experience for our customers. Emirates’ orders this week are all carefully planned to support our future growth and the Dubai economic vision set out by HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum. The Emirates experience is often the first visitor experience of Dubai – and we want it to be the best.”
HH Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, Chairman and Chief Executive, Emirates airline and Group
“With this agreement, we mark another solid step forward in the long-standing relationship agreement between Emirates and Airbus. A relationship founded on a pursuit of innovation, efficiency and operational excellence. Just as the A380 established itself at the heart of Emirates operations, we are equally proud of what the A350 will do in the years to come.”
Christian Scherer, Airbus Chief Commercial Officer and Head of Airbus International
The first A350 is scheduled to join Emirates’ fleet in August 2024, and with the additional orders, Emirates will receive A350 deliveries until early 2028. Including its order for 95 additional Boeing aircraft on Monday, Emirates will have a total order book of 310 wide-body aircraft.
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