There is hardly any other topic in discussions about future mobility and its energy that has raised so many eyebrows as Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF), sometimes generally referred to as “electricity-based synthetic fuels.”. For some, these fuels, which are ideally CO2-neutral, are the future with which combustion engines can continue to be operated without any problems. Others see them as niche products with no major future impact, which are at most suitable candidates for “greenwashing”. In such discussions, which are often emotional and not necessarily fact-based, each party usually has one or two examples at hand to support their respective position. For example, the first transatlantic flight with SAF, which, as a singular event, certainly demonstrated technical possibilities, but can by no means be seen as a turning point towards CO2-neutral aviation​​​​. 

In this article, I will provide an overview of some of the relevant backgrounds, technologies, and developments in this context.  

As in all my articles, I focus on scientific contexts as well as facts, figures, and data, leaving ideologies and emotions aside. Given the very large number of existing projects, prototypes, funding measures, plans for large-scale plants, etc., it goes without saying that this can only be a current snapshot with no claim to completeness. 

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