Is Sustainable Aviation Fuel the Solution or a Harmful Distraction?
Skift Take
Sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) is a hotly debated topic within an aviation industry grappling with a monumental decarbonization challenge.
Currently, sustainable aviation fuel accounts for only 0.3% of global jet fuel usage, with projections indicating a modest increase to 0.7% by 2025.
Yet the goals are ambitious. The U.S. Department of Energy's Sustainable Aviation Fuel Grand Challenge aims for 3 billion gallons of annual SAF production by 2030, which would cover 10% of U.S. jet fuel demand. By 2050, it hopes for 35 billion gallons – that’s 100% of demand.
There is mounting resistance to these lofty targets. AirAsia co-founder Tony Fernandes was particularly blunt in his criticism of sustainable aviation fuel at the Skift Global Forum East conference in November: “I think sustainable aviation fuel is stupid. I think it makes absolutely no sense at all because there is not enough cooking oil in the world to fill the planes. Putting 1% or 2% of cooking oil into your plane is not go
