On Tuesday, November 28, the first transatlantic flight using 100% pure sustainable aviation fuel (Saf) took off from Heathrow. The Virgin Atlantic Boeing 787 Dreamliner flight to JFK in New York took off shortly before 12 a.m.
Sir Richard Branson, the founder of Virgin Atlantic, and Mark Harper, the transport secretary, were on board, but there were no paying passengers.
SAFs are made from renewable biomass and waste resources and can be used up to 50% in jet fuel in modern aircraft after being blended with kerosene.
“The world will always assume something can’t be done until you do it,” Virgin Atlantic founder Richard Branson said before joining the flight.
“The spirit of innovation is getting out there and trying to prove that we can do things better for everyone’s benefit.”
Virgin Atlantic posted a video of the first-ever transatlantic flight. “History at 38,000ft. Virgin Atlantic is currently flying the world’s first 100% Sustainable Aviation Fuel flight across the Atlantic by a commercial airline. Flight100 marks the culmination of more than a year of radical cross-industry collaboration to see this take to the skies,” the airlines wrote in the caption.
The flight is a significant step toward making air travel more environmentally friendly as the world strives to achieve net zero emissions by 2050, according to the UK government.
The UK government announced in December that it would contribute up to $1.26 million to the project, which is being led by Virgin in collaboration with the University of Sheffield, US aircraft manufacturer Boeing, and British engine manufacturer Rolls-Royce, according to AFP.
British Transport Secretary Mark Harper said ahead of the transatlantic flight that the government “will continue to support the UK’s emerging SAF industry as it creates jobs, grows the economy, and gets us to Jet Zero.”