KLM last month carried out a commercial passenger flight partly flown with sustainably produced synthetic kerosene, in the latest push by Dutch industry to develop alternative fuels for aviation. Details of the landmark flight were disclosed during a Synthetic Sustainable Aviation Fuels conference held in The Hague today. The KLM flight from Schiphol airport to Madrid was carried out on an admixture of 500 litres of sustainable synthetic kerosene. Shell produced the synthetic kerosene in Amsterdam based on CO2, water, and renewable solar and wind energy. KLM chief executive Pieter Elbers says: “I am proud that KLM is today operating the industry-first flight using synthetic kerosene made from renewable sources. The transition from fossil fuel to sustainable alternatives is one of the largest challenges in aviation. “Fleet renewal contributed significantly to the reduction of CO2 emissions, but the upscaling of production and the use of sustainable aviation fuel will make the biggest difference for the current generation of aircraft. That is why we teamed up with various partners some time ago, to stimulate the development of sustainable synthetic kerosene. This first flight on synthetic kerosene shows that it is possible in practice and that we can move forward.” Shell Netherlands chief executive Marjan van Loon describes the flight as an important first step, adding: “Together with our partners we now need to scale up, accelerate and make it commercially viable.” The Netherlands has been prominent in promoting sustainable aviation fuel projects, with the Dutch government supporting various initiatives to stimulate production and use, and thereby make it commercially viable. Notably that includes the construction of the first European factory for sustainable biokerosene in Delfzijl, on which SkyNRG is collaborating with KLM, Schiphol airport and SHV Energy. Details were also disclosed during the conference of further initiatives under way. They include a project under which start-up Synkero is collaborating with the Port of Amsterdam, Schiphol, KLM and SkyNRG on a commercial synthetic sustainable kerosene factory. Elsewhere, energy firm Uniperjhas has signed an MoU with the Zenid consortium, which includes Rotterdam airport, Climeworks and SkyNRG, to support the engineering and operation of a direct CO2 capture demonstration plant.

Rolls-Royce could shut down its civil aerospace business for two weeks during the summer in a bid to manage costs amid the coronavirus pandemic. “As we continue to manage our cost base in response to the ongoing impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the whole commercial aviation sector, we are proposing a two-week operational shutdown of Civil Aerospace operations which are located around the world but the majority are in the UK where our primary site is in Derby,” it says. “Exactly how the shutdown operates needs to be discussed with union and employee representatives and abide by national laws.” The announcement follows the release of R-R’s outlook in late January, in which it forecast that twin-aisle, long-haul flying hours will be at just 55% of pre-crisis levels during 2021, sharply lower than its previous forecast of 70%. R-R remarks that it is also looking at its Singapore operations. “In Singapore, we continue to look at cost management options that are practical for our operations and setup,” it says. We are engaging directly with our colleagues as well as the union and relevant government stakeholders on this.” The company will disclose its full-year results in March. R-R is profoundly affected by Covid-19, given that its civil aerospace business is heavily weighted toward larger engines on widebodies.

Airbus’s activity for the first month of 2021 centred on deliveries, with 21 aircraft handed over during January. The airframer did not record any orders – or cancellations – over the course of the month. Its two long-haul aircraft deliveries comprised an A350-900 for Turkish Airlines and an A330-800 for Uganda Airlines. Among the 19 single-aisle deliveries were 10 A320neos, one A321neo, one A319neo and four A321s, plus three A220s for Delta Air Lines and Air Canada. Airbus deliveries for January were about one-third down from those in the same month last year, when it handed over 31 aircraft. Its backlog at the end of January 2021 stood at 7,163 aircraft including 508 A350s and 297 A330s.