For the first time in Michigan aviation history, sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) has arrived at Detroit Metropolitan Airport for use on Delta Air Lines flights.
SAF is a drop-in-solution that can be used in today’s aircraft without any modifications, and it can reduce lifecycle carbon emissions by up to 80 percent compared to traditional petroleum-powered jet fuel, with the potential to vastly reduce the aviation industry’s carbon footprint, according to Delta.
The SAF shipment of more than 7,000 gallons was delivered via existing pipeline directly to DTW this week with the collaboration of multiple partners. The SAF batch was initially transported by Shell from Montana Renewables (MRL), the largest producer of SAF in North America, to a Buckeye Partners facility in Dearborn.
“SAF is the most promising lever we have to decarbonize our industry, however we continue to see that there isn’t enough of it getting produced, especially domestically,” says Amelia DeLuca, chief sustainability officer for Delta Air Lines. “This SAF shipment represents a huge step forward in proving that we can produce SAF here in the Midwest and seamlessly integrate it into existing fuel supplies — it (also) shows what’s possible when we collaborate across the entire SAF value chain.”
Michigan’s SAF shipment is part of a batch of SAF made from camelina, a flowering plant, that was recently shipped to the Minneapolis-Saint Paul International airport for the first time as part of the work of the Minnesota SAF Hub, of which Delta is an anchor partner.
Michigan’s agriculture industry stands to greatly benefit from the expansion of SAF, as locally available feedstocks like waste, used cooking oil, soybeans, and corn can be leveraged to produce SAF and other sustainable fuels, potentially boosting the state’s farming economy, according to Delta.
Although SAF is compatible with existing infrastructure, it currently requires supportive public policies like Michigan’s Senate Bill 447 to help scale production. Although the total amount of SAF produced in the world is about 645 million gallons annually, that’s not enough to run global commercial airline operations for a single week.
Beyond the environmental benefits of SAF, there are many opportunities for economic development, but more legislation is needed to support this growing market. SB 447, introduced by Sen. Sam Singh (D-East Lansing), provides key incentives for those who purchase, produce, or blend sustainable aviation fuel, according to Delta.
“As we continue developing and embracing clean energy solutions within Michigan’s mobility ecosystem, sustainable aviation fuel at Detroit Metropolitan Airport provides an exciting opportunity for Michigan to help be a part of the aviation industry’s clean energy future,” says Justine Johnson, chief mobility officer for the State of Michigan.
Delta is covering the cost of the SAF that will be used on its DTW flights.
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