Qantas’ move to become more sustainable on regular long haul flight

Qantas is making a big change to flights on one of its flagship routes in a first for Australian airlines.

A big change is coming to Qantas flights with the national carrier switching to sustainable petrol on one of its flagship routes.

As of next month, the Australian aviation company will purchase blended sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) for its flights from London to help reduce its carbon emissions by around 10 per cent.

It will be the first time the airline will buy the petrol on an ongoing basis for a regular scheduled flight.

After signing an agreement with BP, it will buy 10 million litres of SAF in 2022 and will have the option to purchase up to another 10 million litres until 2024 from Heathrow Airport.

It will be produced with certified bio feedstock and used cooking oil or waste products that are blended together with regular jet fuel.

According to Qantas, the use of the fuel increased particularly in Europe, the UK and the United States in a move to try decarbonise the aviation sector.

Qantas is making a big change by switching to sustainable fuel on its flights from London. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Naomi Jellicoe

The company's chief sustainability officer Andrew Parker said climate change was “incredibly important” to its customers, employees and investors and the sustainable fuel was key to the airline meeting its net zero emissions target by 2050.

“Zero emission technology, like electric aircraft or green hydrogen, are still a very long way off for aviation and even further away for long haul flights like London to Australia,“ he said.

“SAF and high quality carbon offsetting are therefore critical on the path to net zero.

“Aviation biofuels typically deliver around an 80 per cent reduction of greenhouse gas emissions on a life cycle basis compared to the jet fuel it is replacing and is the most significant tool airlines have to reduce their impact on the environment.”

Martin Thomsen from Air BP said the company aspired to be the leading supplier of SAF.

“We are committed to working with customers to scale up its use,” he said.

“We believe it is one of the key routes to reducing carbon emissions in the aviation industry.”

Qantas will buy the blended sustainable aviation fuel from next month in a move to reduce its carbon emissions by around 10 per cent. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Andrew Henshaw