Asia-Pacific airlines set target of 5% sustainable fuel use by 2030

It is a collective goal, Says association, so some members may do more than others

- Kok Yufeng

For the first time, the leaders of the 14 airlines that form the Association of Asia-Pacific Airlines (AAPA), including Singapore Airlines (SIA), have pledged to strive towards a target of 5 per cent sustainable aviation fuel use by 2030.

This is a collective, "aspirational" target, said AAPA director-general Subhas Menon on Friday at a meeting of the association's senior airline executives, held at the Mandarin Oriental, Singapore.

This means that some airlines in the association may end up using a higher mix of sustainable jet fuel than others.

Cathay Pacific, an AAPA member, has set its own target for sustainable jet fuel to make up 10 per cent of its fuel consumption by 2030.

SIA chief executive Goh Choon Phong was coy about the flag carrier's plans for using greener fuel.

The carrier and its budget arm Scoot recently conducted 20-month trial, which they said has shown that Singapore is operationally ready to make the switch.

"In order to meet whatever percentage of (sustainable fuel) the association has committed to, you will need the supply to be there," Mr Goh said.

"We would like to see how supply can be encouraged, but we are not making any decision on how we are going to facilitate that. I think it's premature." Currently, the supply of sustainable aviation fuel globally is less than 1 per cent of prevailing demand.