Sustainability Zooms Up the Priority List for Aerospace Industry

If you want to know how serious the aerospace and defence industry is in meeting the challenge of achieving net zero carbon emissions by 2050, look no further than the results of a recent GE Aerospace-commissioned survey of aviation decision makers.

The survey, conducted in May this year by Ipsos, elicited responses from 325 top aviation executives in the U.S., the U.K., China, India, the UAE, and France. While 76% of the respondents — who represent airlines, airframers, and airports, among others — say that the focus on sustainability has fundamentally changed the way the industry operates, 30% were of the view that meeting aviation’s sustainability goal is the number one challenge the industry is facing, even over supply chain and labor issues.

According to the survey, 88% of companies already have a sustainability strategy in place. More than 70% of those interviewed said their company’s sustainability strategy has an impact on how they invest and operate while 74% averred that their company’s sustainability investments will be maintained or grow even in the face of inflation or recession.

Tough but Attainable Goal

Even with the progress the industry is making towards green air travel, not everyone is convinced that the goal of net zero by 2050 is attainable. While 46% of the respondents believe the industry will meet its goal, 32% said it will not. On average, respondents believe the target will be met by 2055. The majority of those who took part in the survey believe advancements in both fuels and engines will play the biggest role in reaching the goal. Increased sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) investment is the most important role that government can play in helping industry reach the 2050 goal, says the survey.

“These results show that the aviation industry is focused on the goal of achieving net zero CO2 emissions by 2050, while also recognizing the need to accelerate efforts and ensure all key stakeholders are on the playing field,” says Allen Paxson, vice president and general manager of commercial programs strategy for GE Aerospace.

Initiatives Galore

Among GE Aerospace’s sustainability initiatives is the CFM RISE (Revolutionary Innovation for Sustainable Engines) program, which involves CFM parent companies GE and Safran Aircraft Engines. The program involves working on a suite of new technologies such as open-fan architecture to achieve at least 20% better fuel efficiency with 20% lower CO2 emissions than the most efficient engines today. Airbus is supporting RISE and will partner with CFM to carry out a flight test demonstrator program on an Airbus A380 during the second half of this decade, to validate the open-fan engine architecture. A half-scale model of the open-fan architecture is on display at the ongoing event.

According to industry experts, the most viable pathway available currently for reducing emissions is increasing the industry’s use of SAF, which can substitute as a drop-in replacement for conventional jet fuel. While battery weight and size constraints limit the use of eVTOLs to short-haul markets, hydrogen-powered passenger aircraft is, at best, at least at least a decade away. There is however signs of promise in this area; in March this year, US-based startup Universal Hydrogen successfully tested a De Havilland Dash 8-300 turboprop powered by hydrogen fuel cells during 15 minutes at an altitude of 3,500 feet or roughly 1 kilometer. The plane featured one normal engine and one electric motor fed by a hydrogen fuel cell.

The SAF Conundrum

There is surging demand for SAF from airlines, but with supply not anywhere close to meeting demand, governments have started to step in, some with mandates and others with incentives. The European Union’s new ReFuelEU law stipulates that, from 2025, all flights departing from an EU airport will be obliged to uplift a minimum share of (SAF), starting at 2% in 2025. In 2030, the percentage will rise to 6%, and gradually to 70% by 2050.

According to a study conducted as part of theReFuelEU Aviation initiative, with the introduction of a SAF blending mandate, demand for aviation fuel at EU airports would amount to around 46 million tonnes in 2030. In order to reach 5% of SAF by 2030 for all flights departing from EU airports, approximately 2.3 million tonnes of SAF would be required. Currently, the maximum potential SAF production capacity in the EU is estimated at around 0.24 million tonnes, which is only 10% of the amount of SAF required to meet the proposed mandate by 2030.

“The reality is that we still have a long way to go, and we need the whole industry, including airlines, airports, OEMs, fuel producers and governments, to accelerate SAF production,” says Jonathan Wood, Vice President Commercial and Technical Management at the Renewable Aviation business unit at Neste, the largest SAF producer in the world. “It is difficult to look into the future, but we see encouraging developments across the globe with production ramp-up, policy support and airlines and corporates using SAF to reduce their emissions.”

Greening Aviation

The industry’s focus on reducing emissions is in plain sight at the show. Boeing, which has unveiled several green aviation initiatives recently, is demonstrating its "Cascade" Climate Impact Model, a data-modeling tool made available to the public earlier this year to provide actionable insights towards the aviation industry's goal of net-zero emissions by 2050. The company is also unveiling a new tool that tracks sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) capacity around the world and will provide an update on delivering 100% SAF-compatible airplanes by 2030. The aerospace giant’s sustainability initiatives include a research project with MIT to help decarbonize aerospace, a partnership with Alder Fuels to scale SAF globally, and a purchase of 2 million gallons of SAF in 2022 for its commercial airplane operations.

Embraer’s initiatives in the sphere include increased use of SAF in its operations; all its flights during the show will be powered by SAF blend. It plans to implement 25% sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) use in its operations by 2040 and 100% renewable energy sources by 2030. Last year, the Pratt & Whitney GTF-powered E195-E2 was successfully tested on 100% SAF last year. The E2 family of jets is targeted to be compatible with 100% SAF before 2030. The Brazilian plane maker’s Energia project explores a range of sustainable concepts to carry up to 50 passengers. After unveiling four concepts, the company has decided to focus on 19 and 30 seater designs for hybrid-electric and hydrogen-electric propulsion.

Airbus is in Paris with the EcoPulse hybrid-electric aircraft, a Distributed Hybrid-Electric Propulsion aircraft demonstrator jointly developed by it, Daher and Safran. The technology demonstrator’s first flight will take place later this year. In March this year, an A321neo took off from Airbus’ headquarters in Toulouse, France with both of its engines powered by 100% unblended SAF. Airbus’ partners in the VOLCAN project are Safran and Dassault Aviation, along with the ONERA aeronautics research laboratory and the French Ministry of Transport. Currently, all Airbus commercial and military aircraft, as well as helicopters, can fly with an up to a 50% blend of SAF. The goal is to ensure 100% SAF capability by 2030 of these aircraft types. The European aerospace company is also working on hydrogen-powered concepts for future aircraft and has committed to having a hydrogen-powered jet ready for entry into service by 2035.