Signature Flight Support, Neste partner to bring SAF to 3 airports

Signature Flight Support, the world’s largest network of fixed-base operations (FBO), announced in June new permanent supplies of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) at three airports: Austin-Bergstrom International Airport in Austin, Texas (AUS), Houston-Hobby Airport in Houston, Texas (HOU), and the Norman Y. Mineta San Jose International Airport in San Jose, California (SJC). In addition to being the first FBO to offer commercially available SAF at any airport in the state of Texas, Signature Flight Support is leading the business aviation industry’s drive towards sustainability as the largest network provider for permanent SAF, which now totals nine airports around the world.

Signature’s SAF is supplied through its Signature Renew program, and added locations use Neste MY Sustainable Aviation Fuel™. The industry-leading 35/65 blend ratio of renewable feedstock and traditional Jet A fuel reduces direct net lifecycle carbon output by 25 percent, with that number set to increase in the near future as regulators allow for increased blend ratios. The initial agreement for Texas, encompassing more than 100,000 gallons of SAF, is expected to yield a 350 metric ton reduction in aircraft CO2 emissions.

“Signature is achieving yet another first in business aviation’s sustainability journey with the introduction of commercially available SAF in Texas,” said Marty Kretchman, senior vice president of operations planning with Signature Flight Support. “We continue to exhibit SAF growth that can be quantified in the millions of gallons, and to date Signature Renew has prevented thousands of tons—not pounds—of CO2 from entering the environment.”

Chris Cooper, vice president of renewable aviation for Neste in North America, said, “Sustainable aviation fuel is driving one of the biggest transformations in the business aviation industry that we’ve seen in a long time. It’s as impactful as the first Boeing 747 flight 40 years ago, which ushered in a new era of affordable air travel. Together, Neste and Signature Flight Support are creating a future where business aviation passengers can fly with a much smaller carbon footprint by revolutionizing what powers aircraft.”

Neste and Signature Flight Support formed a strategic partnership to create an efficient, continuous supply of SAF for business aviation in the United States and beyond. Neste has been at the vanguard of sustainable aviation fuel production for nearly a decade and the company expects to have the capacity to produce some 515 million gallons of SAF annually by 2023. Recently, Neste and Signature Flight Support achieved the important milestone of safely delivering 1 million gallons of SAF to private aircraft at the San Francisco International Airport.

Growing the availability of SAF is one of the core components of the Signature Renew program. Signature Renew aims to drive business aviation’s adoption of environmentally sustainable practices through a combination of aircraft operator programs, airport infrastructure improvements, and company-wide carbon emission reductions. Signature has set an organizational objective to produce net-zero emissions across its operations by 2030.

To date, Signature offers an SAF option for privately operated aircraft at its aviation service facilities in California, Washington, Alabama, Texas, and the U.K. Final processing of Signature’s Texas SAF supplies is performed locally at the Galena Park Terminal in Houston, Texas.