Sustainable Aviation in The US: Turning Ambition Into Delivery

The aviation industry has remained firmly committed to achieving net-zero carbon emissions, with Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) positioned as a key pillar of this transition. Yet as momentum builds, so too does the complexity of delivering on these ambitions.

As the graph below shows, aviation has already made significant progress in improving fuel efficiency, demonstrating its ability to innovate and adapt at scale.

$Over the past 50 years, air travel has become more fuel-efficient$

However, the next phase of decarbonisation presents a fundamentally different challenge. Incremental efficiency gains alone will no longer be sufficient to meet net-zero targets. Instead, the industry must now scale entirely new fuel systems, infrastructure and supply chains – all within an increasingly complex economic and regulatory environment.

What was once a question of what needs to be done has now become a question of how to deliver it at scale.

A Market Defined by Growth and Urgency

According to the World Economic Forum, demand for SAF is accelerating rapidly, particularly in the United States, driven by airline commitments, corporate sustainability targets and increasing regulatory attention.

Unlike conventional jet fuel, SAF can be produced from a range of non-fossil sources, including biomass and synthetic processes. However, its sustainability impact varies depending on feedstock and production pathway, adding complexity to scaling efforts.

At the same time, global competition for SAF production is intensifying, with regions positioning themselves as future hubs.

The scale of the challenge becomes clear when comparing projected SAF demand with supply. Demand is expected to significantly outpace production capacity over the coming decade, creating a critical bottleneck.

This imbalance highlights the urgency of accelerating production and investment across the SAF value chain.

From Ambition to Reality

A key milestone on the path to Net Zero 2050 was reached in November 2023 with Flight100. Operated by Virgin Atlantic, the flight travelled from London Heathrow Airport to John F. Kennedy International Airport using 100% SAF in both engines — the first transatlantic flight of its kind by a commercial airline.

The flight, carried out using a Boeing 787, demonstrates what is technically possible. However, it also highlights the scale of the challenge ahead, as conventional flights on this route still produce significant emissions.

How much emissions does one flight from London to New York produce

The majority of emissions come directly from jet fuel combustion, reinforcing why SAF is seen as a critical decarbonisation lever.

The Reality: Structural Challenges

Despite strong momentum, several structural challenges continue to slow progress:

Policy and Regulatory Uncertainty
A lack of consistent long-term policy in the US creates uncertainty for investors and developers, delaying large-scale projects.
Economics and Investment Viability
SAF remains significantly more expensive than conventional jet fuel, limiting scalability and slowing investment.
Supply Chain Constraints
Dependence on feedstocks such as waste oils and biomass introduces volatility in both availability and pricing.
Infrastructure Gaps
Production, distribution and airport integration infrastructure is still underdeveloped and requires significant capital investment.

These challenges point to a core issue: the gap between ambition and delivery.

The aviation sector does not lack strategy – it lacks the ability to consistently execute complex, large-scale projects across fragmented ecosystems and evolving regulatory environments.

Delivering sustainable aviation requires:

Coordination across governments, energy providers and airlines
Management of large-scale capital projects
Integration of new technologies into existing systems
Navigation of policy and supply chain complexity

In short, this is not just an energy transition – it is a delivery challenge.

What This Means For The US Market

In the US, where sustainability is more market-driven, project success increasingly depends on execution capability.

This drives demand for:

Specialist expertise in infrastructure delivery
Flexible resourcing models
Strong project and construction management
Deep regulatory and technical understanding

The ability to rapidly mobilise experienced teams can be the difference between project success and delay.

Enabling Delivery

To bridge the gap between ambition and execution, organisations are increasingly turning to specialist consulting partners.

What sets CMC apart is the ability to rapidly deploy highly specialised experts and project teams exactly where delivery bottlenecks occur – turning strategy into execution without delay.

Delivering SAF and related infrastructure requires:

Experience in complex capital projects
Coordination across multiple stakeholders
Scalable, flexible project teams
Access to niche technical expertise

Coalesce Management Consulting (CMC) supports organisations across advanced engineering and energy sectors by providing immediate access to this critical expertise.

Through services such as Expert on Demand, Team on Demand, and Capacity Partnering, CMC enables clients to scale delivery capability in line with project ambition – ensuring projects move forward with speed and confidence.

Looking Ahead

The direction of travel is clear: SAF will play a central role in decarbonising aviation, and demand will continue to grow.

However, success will depend less on ambition and more on execution.

Organisations that can translate strategy into delivery, manage complexity and scale effectively will define the future of sustainable aviation.

Turning Ambition Into Delivery

For project owners, developers and operators, the challenge is no longer defining strategy – it is delivering it.

CMC partners with organisations to provide the expertise, flexibility and delivery capability required to execute complex SAF and infrastructure projects at scale.

If you are looking to accelerate delivery, scale project teams or de-risk complex programmes, CMC can support you.

Get in touch to discuss your project.

Sources:

World Economic Forum – https://www.weforum.org/publications/global-aviation-sustainability-outlook-2026/

SkyNRG & ICF – https://skynrg.com/safmo25/

Mordor Intelligence – https://www.mordorintelligence.com/industry-reports/us-aviation-market

Virgin Atlantic – https://www.virginatlantic.com/en-NL/corporate/business-for-good/planet/flight100#main-content