Akasa Air, Bharat Petroleum operate commercial flight using low SAF blend
Akasa Air, India’s fastest-growing airline, announced Sept. 9 that it successfully operated a commercial flight using conventional aviation turbine fuel blended with 1 percent sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) supplied by Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd. on Sept. 8.
The flight departed Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport in Mumbai, India, at 1:05 p.m. Indian Standard Time and arrived at Manohar International Airport in Goa, India, at 2:30 p.m. IST.
The initiative builds on the memorandum of understanding signed by Akasa Air and BPCL in July to explore adoption of SAF, along with other opportunities supporting aviation decarbonization.
The flight will provide both organizations with insights and practical learnings that can help inform future initiatives.
“Sustainability is one of Akasa Air’s core values and shapes how we are building the airline for the long term,” said Ankur Goel, Akasa Air’s chief financial officer. “Since inception, we have invested in next-generation aircraft, technology and responsible practices that enable more conscious and efficient operations, both on the ground and in the air. This flight with BPCL translates our partnership into tangible action. Scaling SAF in India will require coordinated action across the ecosystem, supported by domestic supply, enabling policy and commercial viability. We are committed to exploring this transition.”
Subhankar Sen, BPCL’s marketing director, added, “The transition from conventional fuels to sustainable alternatives is both an environmental imperative and a strategic necessity for India. While feedstock availability and aggregation have historically posed challenges due to fragmented supply chains, sustained efforts across the value chain have helped create the foundation for a viable SAF ecosystem. BPCL remains firmly committed to advancing sustainable fuels as part of India’s broader energy-transition journey. As a nation that relies significantly on crude-oil imports, enhancing energy security through sustainable and indigenous energy solutions is the way forward. BPCL is actively driving sustainability initiatives across multiple sectors, and today’s milestone with Akasa Air marks an important step in extending these efforts to aviation and supporting India’s decarbonization goals.”
He also thanked the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, the Ministry of Civil Aviation, and the directorate general of civil aviation (DGCA) for their support and guidance in making this achievement possible.
The flight comes as India works towards its ambition of achieving 5 percent SAF blending by 2030 and reflects the aviation industry’s broader focus on reducing carbon emissions.
It also contributes to the International Air Transport Association’s goal of achieving net-zero carbon emissions by 2050.
