The Sustainable Aviation Journey
The ISTAT Sustainability Symposium, held 29 April at event sponsor Avolon’s headquarters and in partnership with impact on Sustainable Aviation, brought together aviation leaders, financial experts and sustainability advocates to examine the industry’s progress — and roadblocks — toward decarbonization. Through a mix of keynote presentations, interactive sessions and forward-looking panels, attendees explored what it will truly take to transform aviation into a sustainable sector.
Boeing’s Brian Moran on Scaling SAF and Innovation
The event opened with a keynote from Brian Moran, chief sustainability officer at Boeing. Moran outlined Boeing’s comprehensive sustainability strategy: focusing on fleet renewal, operational efficiency, renewable energy sources (like sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), hydrogen and electrification), advanced technologies and market-based measures.
He introduced CASCADE, a data-driven forecast tool that models how these levers can reduce aviation’s carbon footprint. Moran made a strong call for energy industry involvement in SAF scaleup, framing it not just as an environmental imperative but as an opportunity for energy resilience. He also emphasized the role lessors could play through innovative financing models, setting the tone for a day that frequently returned to themes of collaboration and capital investment.
Honoring Innovation: GA Telesis Wins Sustainability Award
This year’s ISTAT Sustainability Award went to GA Telesis for its ambitious sustainability strategy, which includes a goal of reaching 100% SAF usage by 2030 and alignment with 10 of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals. The award recognized the company’s holistic approach to reducing aviation’s environmental impact across operations and investments.
Political Hurdles and Policy Misalignment
Moderated by Paul Sheridan, aviation finance advisory services leader at PwC Ireland, the first panel unpacked the political and regulatory landscape, with insights from Donal Handley, head of government affairs and sustainability at AerCap, and Thomas Fowler, director of sustainability and finance at Ryanair. Panelists expressed concern over the shift from the EU Green Deal to the Clean Industrial Deal and the unpredictable rollout of the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD).
Discussion centered on SAF mandates in Europe, particularly skepticism around the feasibility of achieving 6% blending and eSAF targets. The panel underscored the high cost of synthetic SAF and a lack of alignment among global regulators, which complicates the implementation of climate policies like CORSIA. The takeaway: safety must remain paramount, and net-zero targets may require pragmatic reassessment.
The Economics of Sustainability
The second panel, led by Jim Morrison, chief risk officer at Avolon, tackled macroeconomic dynamics and aircraft values with speakers Richard Evans, FRAeS, senior consultant at Cirium Ascend Consultancy; Ben Chapman, director of aircraft and sustainability at ICF; and Stephen Rooney, lead economist at Tourism Economics. While aviation demand remains strong — driven largely by global wealth — supply chain delays are slowing fleet renewal, hindering sustainability goals.
Panelists emphasized that newer aircraft and engine technologies could hedge against fuel price volatility, but economic uncertainty and fragmented regulation are stalling broader investment. A show-of-hands poll revealed a growing skepticism among attendees about the industry’s ability to meet net-zero targets, signaling a shift in sentiment from previous years.
Interactive Session: Future Technologies Need Financing
In a dynamic session on financing future aviation technologies, Marc Tembleque-Vilalta, senior vice president of portfolio strategy at Avolon, moderated a discussion featuring Sandrine Lacorre, product marketing general manager at CFM, and senior adviser Hal Calamvokis. Lacorre highlighted CFM’s RISE program, a next-gen engine design promising a 20% reduction in fuel use and full SAF compatibility.
Key innovations like open-fan technology — with strong aerodynamic and noise reduction potential — were spotlighted, along with the importance of scaling green hydrogen. An audience poll reflected optimism about the introduction of new engine technologies before 2040, a hopeful contrast to the earlier skepticism.
Aircraft Design, SAF Feedstocks and the 2030 Push
Moderated by Michael Halaby, managing director and head of aviation advisory at MUFG Bank Ltd., the third panel brought together representatives from JetZero, Airbus and Vaeridion. JetZero’s chief operating officer, Dan da Silva, unveiled a blended wing-body aircraft design, focused on maximizing aerodynamic efficiency and dramatically reducing fuel burn. Ivor van Dartel, CEO and co-founder of Vaeridion GmbH, discussed Vaeridion’s 100% electric aircraft for regional travel, pointing to 2030 as a critical milestone as battery efficiency improves.
Julien Manhes, head of SAF and CDR at Airbus, emphasized the manufacturer’s threefold SAF strategy: define sustainable feedstocks, stimulate demand and supply and address the nuances of offsetting. Across the board, panelists stressed that innovation in aircraft must be matched by progress in fuel sourcing and supply chain development.
Finance as a Catalyst for Sustainability
In the final panel, Ulrike Ziegler, president of impact on Sustainable Aviation, led a discussion on sustainability-linked loans and leases, featuring finance and legal experts from Natixis CIB, SMBC, ACG and Norton Rose Fulbright. The panel, which included Jean Chedeville, global head of aviation at Natixis CIB; Kaiori Creed, senior vice president of airline marketing for EMEA at SMBC Aviation Capital; Emma Giddings, partner at Norton Rose Fulbright LLP; and Gordon Grant, vice president and head of ESG at ACG noted a drop in ESG-linked transactions in 2024 — blamed partly on regulatory complexity and geopolitical distractions — but said the market is diversifying.
Key topics included avoiding greenwashing by using robust KPIs, the financing gap for SAF projects and the potential of linking KPIs directly to financial products. Panelists called for ambitious, transparent metrics, collaboration between lenders and operators, and a stronger ecosystem to support funding for innovation.
A Call for Unity and Long-Term Thinking
Across all sessions, one theme resonated clearly: No one can decarbonize aviation alone. The path to net zero will require synchronized efforts among manufacturers, airlines, lessors, regulators, investors and energy producers. And while technological breakthroughs are within reach, the industry must overcome financing hurdles, policy fragmentation and supply chain delays to ensure sustainability is not just aspirational but achievable.
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