Heathrow Airport has announced it is increasing its Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) incentive scheme for 2026, setting a new target of 5.6% SAF uplift, 2% above the government's mandatory requirement of 3.6%.
To support the target, over £80 million is being made available to airlines to help bridge the cost gap between traditional kerosene and SAF, with the scheme designed to approximately halve the price difference between the two fuels, making the cleaner alternative more commercially viable.
If the target is met, around 350,000 tonnes of SAF would be used at Heathrow in 2026, with the potential to reduce carbon emissions by approximately 600,000 tonnes. For context, that is roughly equivalent to eliminating the carbon footprint of more than 950,000 economy class return flights between Heathrow and New York JFK.
SAF can be produced from a variety of sources and is capable of cutting lifecycle carbon emissions by an average of 70% compared to conventional fossil-based jet fuel, according to the UK Government.
Heathrow states that 17% of the world's SAF supply in 2024 was used at the airport. Looking further ahead, the airport has set a target for SAF to account for 11% of fuel uplifted by 2030, exceeding the Government's national mandate of 10% by that date.
The scheme forms part of Heathrow's broader Net Zero Plan, with the airport targeting net zero carbon emissions across its operations by 2050.