United Airlines has announced that Aircastle, Air New Zealand, Embraer, Google, HIS, Natixis Corporate
& Investment Banking, Safran Corporate Ventures and Technip Energies are
now among the 22 corporate partners that make up the ever-growing United
Airlines Ventures Sustainable Flight Fund.
Corporate partners make up all parts of the aviation supply
chain—airlines, aircraft and engine manufacturers, fuel producers,
engineering and technology experts, financiers, travel management and more—and have committed more than $200 million while collaborating to provide
strategic expertise to help the Fund's portfolio companies reach
commercialization.
Since its February 2023 inception, the Fund remains
aviation's first and only venture fund backed by a broad limited partner base
and created to identify and support startups advancing feedstock and technology
development focused on increasing the supply of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF).
United
has included a way for everyday consumers to participate as well. Anyone using
the United website or the app has the option to contribute to supplement
United's investment in the UAV Sustainable Flight Fund before check-out.
Continuing in climate transparency effort, United also shows
estimated carbon emissions for flights booked online or on the app. SAF is an
alternative to conventional jet fuel that, on a lifecycle basis, reduces
greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions associated with air travel compared to
conventional jet fuel alone.
To date, United has invested in the future production of
over five billion gallons of SAF, which is the most of any airline in the world.
"SAF is the best tool we have to decarbonize airplanes,
but we don't have enough of it. To create the fuel supply we need for our
fleet, United recognized that we would have to help build a brand-new industry
from scratch – like wind and solar in previous decades," said Andrew
Chang, Managing Director of United Airlines Ventures in a statement.
"As part of our effort to build a new
sustainable aviation ecosystem, we recruited a group of partners with the
industry expertise to support our startups with both financial and strategic
capital, to help them navigate the entire process from conception to
commercialization," he added.
For the latest travel news, updates and deals, subscribe to the daily TravelPulse newsletter.
Topics From This Article to Explore
