SINGAPORE, 14 June 2024: Emirates has begun using sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) as part of its fuel agreement with Neste on flights departing from Singapore Changi Airport, marking its inaugural SAF investment in Asia. 
Over the last few weeks, approximately 3.3 million litres of blended SAF have been integrated into Changi airport’s fuelling system.

Emirates is tracking the delivery of SAF into the fuelling systems, accounting for and assigning its environmental benefits through widely used and accepted industry methodologies. Earlier this year, the airline closely collaborated with Neste to supply 2.6 million litres of neat SAF in the fuelling systems of Amsterdam Schiphol airport.

The SAF being provided by Neste is produced from sustainably sourced and 100% renewable waste as well as residue raw materials, including used cooking oil and animal fat waste. SAF used as part of this agreement can be safely used in existing Emirates aircraft and airport fuelling infrastructure and in neat form, reduces lifecycle carbon emissions (CO2) by up to 80%* compared to using conventional jet fuel. 

Emirates Deputy President and Chief Operations Officer Adel Al Redha: “Emirates’ investment into Neste-produced SAF in Singapore marks a first step forward in our SAF adoption in Asia, a region that is primed to become a leading supplier of SAF, which continues to be in short supply. While the activation of this agreement marks a milestone in our SAF journey in a new region, there’s still a lot of work to do. And as we procure SAF for the short term, we’ve got our sights set on longer-term agreements to help scale up a steady supply of SAF for our operations.”

Emirates’ multi-faceted SAF strategy focuses on exploring opportunities to use SAF operationally wherever it is available in its network, share emissions reductions with corporate customers or freight forwarders where feasible, cooperate on longer-term SAF projects with reputable partners and support SAF ventures in the UAE with the potential to supply sustainable aviation fuel at its hub in the future.

Emirates currently operates flights from Amsterdam, London Heathrow, Paris, Lyon and Oslo with SAF. The airline also integrated SAF into the fuelling systems at its Dubai hub late last year. In 2023, Emirates was also the first airline in the world to operate two landmark demonstration flights from Dubai on the Boeing 777 and A380 with 100% SAF in one engine in partnership with Neste and other committed partners, supporting future certification where 100% drop in SAF is approved for commercial airline operations. Currently, SAF is approved for use in all aircraft but only in blends of up to 50% with conventional jet fuel.

The airline has also committed USD$200 million to research and development (R&D) projects focused on reducing the impact of fossil fuels on commercial aviation. Last month, it became an industrial partner of the Aviation Impact Accelerator (AIA), based at the University of Cambridge. Emirates intends to actively share its knowledge and data, as well as insights, with AIA to support the development of cutting-edge tools and solutions to reduce the long-term impact of commercial aviation.

The airline is a member of the Solent Cluster in the UK, an initiative focused on low-carbon investments. If operational by 2032, the cluster’s initiative could create a Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) plant that can produce up to 200,000 tonnes (200 kt) per year.

Emirates is also a founding participant of the UAE research consortium AirCRAFT, which is focused on developing, producing, and scaling sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) technologies for the industry.

*When used in neat form (i.e. unblended) and calculated with established life cycle assessment (LCA) methodologies, such as CORSIA methodology

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BANGKOK, 13 June 2024: To commemorate World Environment Day and as part of an environmental strategy that includes a commitment to consuming responsibly, Emirates is repurposing more than 50,000 kilogrammes of materials from 191 aircraft undergoing a cabin interior refresh. 

Emirates will give new life to the materials and is personally producing thousands of handmade children’s backpacks and schoolbags, which will be donated to community schools and organisations supporting early education across Africa and Asia this year.

To minimise waste, Emirates’ Engineering team found a way to repurpose the fabrics from the economy class seats of 22 Airbus A380 aircraft that have completed the retrofit process. 

The project recovered 5,205 kilogrammes of scrap materials, including seat fabric of 95% wool and 5% nylon composition with a flat weave structure sourced from Germany and Ireland. The materials were identified as ideal for upcycling due to their durability and non-flammable nature, and a decision was made to make high-quality backpacks for children in need.

In the workshop at Emirates Engineering, a dedicated team of tailors creatively designed a whole range of backpacks for children of different ages and worked with the Emirates Corporate Communications, Marketing & Brand team to identify charitable entities, schools, orphanages, and foundations across Africa and Asia, where the bags are set to be distributed in the coming months.

The world’s largest-ever known retrofit project is a multibillion-dollar investment from Emirates, which kicked off in August 2022 with the intention of fully re-fitting 191 aircraft and elevating customer experience. This includes 110 Airbus A380s and 81 Boeing 777 aircraft, which together have the potential to provide up to 50,000 kilograms of waste fabrics. As and when the aircraft is furnished with new fabrics, there is also scope to recover the excess ‘cut off’ materials for repurposing and upcycling.

From the 22 Airbus A380 aircraft that have been completely retrofitted, materials from First and Business Class cabins such as leather, aluminium, and wool have already been repurposed. The Aircrafted by Emirates range is a limited-edition capsule collection of luggage launched in November 2023 and designed in-house by Emirates Engineering, which sold out in weeks. Proceeds from the first sale of the not-for-profit collection Aircrafted by Emirates amounted to more than 70,000 AED, and after minimal operational cost deductions, were donated to Emirates Airline Foundation supporting humanitarian projects around the world.

Managed entirely by Emirates’ Engineering team, the retrofit is a considerable project that will take years to complete and provide multiple opportunities for upcycling. This will see 21,814 economy seats installed, 8,104 brand new premium economy seats installed, 1,894 first-class suites refurbished, over 11,182 new generation business class seats installed, as well as the opportunity for more creative upcycling initiatives to be launched.

For more information on flights or to book, visit www.emirates.com.