(TAN): Vistara said it has become India’s first carrier to operate a wide-body aircraft using sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) on a long-haul route.
The ferry flight from Charleston International Airport, South Carolina to Indira Gandhi International Airport, Delhi was operated in partnership with Boeing and GE Aerospace, on Vistara’s newest GEnx-powered Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner aircraft, the fourth in its fleet, the airline said in a news release.
By using a blend of 30% SAF with 70% conventional jet fuel, Vistara was able to reduce approximately 150,000 pounds of CO₂ emissions over the fuel’s life cycle.
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Vistara CEO Vinod Kannan said, “We take immense pride in carrying out another pioneering initiative to operate a wide-body aircraft on a long-haul route using SAF, as we took delivery of our all-new Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner. This is an important milestone in our commitment towards achieving carbon neutrality.”
Boeing India President Salil Gupte said, “We congratulate Vistara on the significant achievement of becoming the first Indian airline to operate a wide-body aircraft, the Boeing 787-9, on a long-haul route using SAF. This is a major milestone in the Indian aviation industry’s journey towards decarbonization.”
Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) is a cleaner and more sustainable alternative to conventional jet fuel, lowering carbon emissions by up to 80% over the fuel’s life cycle, depending on the feedstock.
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Vistara airline is currently working under the TATA Aviation Sustainability Working Group along with the other aviation arms of the TATA group for reducing carbon emissions. Vistara, along with other airline companies of the Tata group – Air India and Air Asia India, recently signed an MoU with the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research – Indian Institute of Petroleum to collaborate on the research, development and deployment of sustainable aviation fuels (SAFs). The airline would also be jointly working through the Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation (CORSIA), to lower CO2 emissions for international flights and to curb the industry’s impact on climate change.
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