The UK began enforcing its sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) mandate at the start of 2025, requiring airlines to meet 2 per cent of the country’s total jet fuel demand with SAF. The share is set to rise to 3.6 per cent in 2026, 10 per cent by 2030, and 22 per cent by 2040, edie reported.
Against this backdrop, Heathrow Airport said it plans to exceed the national requirement by targeting a 5.6 per cent SAF blend. The airport announced it will make more than £80 million available to airlines in 2026 to help offset the higher cost of SAF compared with traditional jet fuel. The funding is intended to encourage carriers to increase their use of lower-emission fuel.
SAF is produced as an alternative to fossil-based kerosene and can be made from materials such as waste oils and agricultural products. It is widely reported to cut overall carbon emissions by around 70 per cent over its lifecycle, although some concerns have been raised about the environmental impact of certain raw materials used in its production.
Heathrow said meeting its 5.6 per cent target would result in the use of about 350,000 tonnes of SAF at the airport in 2026. Of this amount, more than 124,000 tonnes would be above the level required under the government mandate.
The airport estimates that reaching this level of SAF use could reduce carbon emissions by around 600,000 tonnes. It said this saving would be comparable to removing more than 950,000 economy-class return flights between Heathrow and John F. Kennedy International Airport.
Looking further ahead, Heathrow has set a goal of increasing SAF to 11 per cent of all fuel used at the airport by 2030. The airport’s sustainability director, Matt Gorman, said the fuel is already delivering real results and highlighted that Heathrow accounted for a significant share of global SAF use in 2024. He added that wider adoption of SAF is central to aviation’s efforts to reach net-zero emissions by 2050.
