Private jets have a reputation for being particularly bad for the environment but on-demand charter broker Victor is offering passengers the chance to invest in ‘sustainable aviation fuel’ (SAF) as a way of lessening their carbon footprint. Jenny Southan investigates
As a travel journalist, I get to go on some really interesting assignments from time to time. A few months ago I was invited to fly to Rotterdam on a private jet – they even threw in Tesla car transfers to Biggin Hill airport outside of London. It sounds glamorous – and the journey certainly was. No queues at the airport, just straight on to the tarmac and a short walk to our awaiting plane. We were served a quick breakfast before take-off, which was then cleared away because the G-force sends loose items flying during the ascent, and then we were up above the clouds. But instead of whizzing off to a Michelin-star restaurant, my fellow writers and I were to be taken to a factory to learn about how Finnish oil refining company Neste is developing a more environmentally friendly alternative to fossil fuel.
But how do we know it’s not just hype, in the way carbon offsetting seems to be (some experts say that carbon offsets are a scam)? In 2019, Victor decided to pay to 200 per cent carbon offset all its private jet flights on behalf of customers. But since January 2023, it has stopped. Four years ago, the decision was seen as revolutionary and progressive but now Victor has ditched this strategy in favour of an “industry-leading” partnership with Neste – its SAF promises to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by up to 80 per cent over their lifecycle, compared with fossil fuels. Last year, Neste claimed its biofuel helped customers reduce greenhouse gas emissions globally by 11 million tons – the equivalent of the annual carbon footprint of 1.8 million EU citizens.
Since June 2022, Victor users have been able to buy SAF for their private jet flights, as well as credibly track their emissions savings. Upon boarding our aircraft at Biggin Hill, we were told that the fossil fuel for our flight was effectively replaced with 100 per cent SAF. However, the biofuel wasn’t actually pumped on to our plane – it was pumped on to a Finnair plane at Helsinki airport (Victor calls this approach “buy here, use there”). Obviously this can be pretty confusing so to prove that it powered a real flight, we were given a SAF delivery confirmation certificate, which showed that 1.48 metric tonnes of SAF (in this case made from animal fat) was delivered to Finnair, and it offered an overall emission reduction of almost 75 per cent on our flight.
With pricing on a sliding scale, it costs about €675 to offset one tonne of CO2 with SAF. So how much did it cost to offset our flight to Rotterdam? We were flying a return trip aboard a Legacy 650 heavy jet, which cost €25,250 plus €3,520 for the SAF – 14 per cent more expensive than regular jet fuel, Neste told us. What’s uptake been like – are people willing to pay the extra? In November 2022, when we did our trip, Victor said that it had received 111 booking requests for SAF representing about one in five (or 20 per cent) of jet charters (remember that private jet users aren’t just celebrities, they are government officials, medical professionals, company CEOs and so on). Most clients choose about 30 per cent SAF for their trip. (Here’s me looking happy about our 100 per cent SAF flight.)
Flying back on our private jet in the evening, with a glass of champagne in hand, I couldn’t help but wonder if SAF was as benevolent as it seemed. Given SAF burns in the same way as normal fossil fuel, it still emits greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. The “offset” comes from the fact that the production of it is less damaging than drilling and refining oil. The fact that Neste upcycles used cooking oil from McDonald’s, and is also exploring developing SAF from other “feedstocks” such as algae and municipal solid waste, then that has got to be better. The reality is that it is early days – right now, SAF only accounts for about 0.1 per cent of all aviation fuel burnt. But Neste is betting big, with work already underway to expand its Rotterdam refinery at a cost of €1.9 billion by 2026, making it one of the largest SAF production facilities on the planet. It also has a SAF refinery in Singapore.
However, Globetrender is always an advocate of innovation and SAF holds great potential for an era beyond fossil fuel. In the future, it is hoped that flights will be powered by 100 per cent SAF but at the moment regulations allow for a 50 per cent blend. Widespread use won’t occur, though, until government mandates are introduced, production becomes far more plentiful and costs come down significantly. There has also got to be trust from consumers, too – but imploring the general public to pay extra for SAF on commercial flights is not the route to go down. Airlines need to do it as standard and pass on the cost in the form of higher ticket prices, if needs be. (I’d like to see Victor do this for private jet charters.) Until then, it will be down to responsible private jet users (if that is not a paradox) to lead the way.