Air France-KLM runs first long-haul flight on sustainable aviation fuel

London, (Quantum Commodity Intelligence) - French airline Air France-KLM operated its first long-haul flight operated on sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) Tuesday, the company announced.

The flight, between Paris Charles De Gaulle airport and Montreal, Canada, used SAF made from used cooking oil and animal fats produced by energy major Total at its La Mede biorefinery.

Starting next year, French airlines will need to use a minimum 1% of SAF, rising to 5% by 2030 and 50% by 2050.

Decarbonising the aviation sector is a focus for policymakers, but it faces technical difficulties switching to the low-carbon electric or hydrogen power that road transport is likely to transition to.

Instead, aviation is likely to rely on low-carbon liquid fuels and the International Energy Agency said Tuesday that advanced biofuels would need to account for 45% of energy and synthetic kerosene around one-third, to achieve net-zero emissions globally by 2050.