Sustainability In The Air

In this episode, we speak with Kyle Clark, Founder and CEO of BETA Technologies, who shares how his company went from a college thesis to a publicly traded electric aviation manufacturer delivering real aircraft and generating revenue from military, medical and cargo customers.
Clark discusses:
The advantage of electric flight: How batteries deliver propulsion at 95% efficiency versus 30% for conventional engines, and how reducing the drag by 30-40% helps electric aircraft achieve meaningful range despite batteries being 30 times less energy dense than jet fuel.
The vertical integration imperative: Why aerospace engineering demands system-level optimisation across motors, inverters, batteries and aerodynamics, making vertical integration essential rather than optional for electric aircraft.
Strategic market entry through low-friction use cases: Why Beta prioritised military, medical and cargo applications over urban air mobility.
The CTOL-first certification pathway: How Beta’s dual-configuration approach (conventional takeoff and landing, then adding vertical takeoff capability) enables earlier type certification, while competitors pursue more complex certification paths.
Charging infrastructure as a standalone business: How Beta’s charging network may become as valuable as the aircraft business, already extending along the East Coast and winning international contracts like Abu Dhabi.
The “team member” culture at scale: Beta’s radical approach to titles and ownership, giving equity to all employees, and maintaining a flying programme for all staff.
If you LOVED this episode, you’ll also love the conversation we had with Billy Thalheimer, co-founder and CEO of REGENT, who shares how his company is developing all-electric Seagliders. Check it out here.
Learn more about the innovators who are navigating the industry’s challenges to make sustainable aviation a reality, in our new book ‘Sustainability in the Air: Volume 2’. Click here to learn more.
Feel free to reach out via email to [email protected]. For more content on sustainable aviation, visit our website green.simpliflying.com and join the movement. It’s about time.
Links & More:
BETA Technologies 
Amazon Buys 5.3% Stake in BETA Technologies - Yahoo 
Air New Zealand and BETA Technologies launch first electric aircraft programme - AeroMorning
GE Aerospace & BETA partner on $300m hybrid-electric aviation push - Aerospace Global News

In this episode, we speak with Philipp Furler, Founder and CEO of Synhelion, who shares how the Swiss technology company is working to scale synthetic fuels by tackling some of the fundamental cost and infrastructure barriers facing SAF today.
Furler discusses:
The path to $1/litre production costs: How Synhelion targets production costs of around $1 per litre within 10-15 years through three key advantages: cheap solar energy with thermal storage enabling 24/7 operation, avoiding electrolysis and green hydrogen entirely, and achieving over 90% energy conversion efficiency.
From fuel producer to technology licensor: How Synhelion plans to demonstrate business case viability by developing projects, building plants, and selling fuel up to 30,000 tons annually by 2030, then transitioning to a project developer and technology licensing model.
Multi-product revenue streams reduce risk: Why producing not just 70% SAF but also diesel, naphtha, and gasoline creates multiple revenue streams, enabling customer partnerships and market momentum to support scale-up.
Seamless integration with existing refineries: How Synhelion supplies synthetic crude oil directly into refineries in the Lufthansa and Swiss network where it’s co-processed with fossil crude in a mass-balanced system, demonstrating that decarbonisation requires only building new production plants, not rebuilding downstream infrastructure.
If you LOVED this episode, you’ll also love the conversation we had with Tim Boeltken, Founder and Managing Director at INERATEC, who shares insights into the company’s modular technology platform and the potential of e-fuels to revolutionise the future of SAF. Check it out here. 
Learn more about the innovators who are navigating the industry’s challenges to make sustainable aviation a reality, in our new book ‘Sustainability in the Air: Volume 2’. Click here to learn more.
Feel free to reach out via email to [email protected]. For more content on sustainable aviation, visit our website green.simpliflying.com and join the movement. It’s about time.
Links & More:
Synhelion
Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) – a renewable synthetic fuel - Synhelion 
German firm Synhelion opens ‘world’s 1st’ industrial solar fuel plant - Interesting Engineering 
SWISS integrates first supplies of Synhelion solar SAF into flight operations - GreenAir News

In this episode, we speak with Sabrina Tekle Krarup Jensen, Head of Strategic Partnerships and Innovation at Copenhagen Airports A/S (CPH), who shares how the airport is navigating some of aviation’s most complex sustainability challenges.
Jensen discusses:
CPH’s unique role as neutral facilitator: How the airport leverages its position outside the commercial fuel supply chain to support multiple SAF projects, and connect stakeholders across the entire aviation value chain.
The eSAF financing gap challenge: Why eSAF prices remain 8-10 times higher than Jet A-1, preventing offtakers from signing the long-term agreements producers need to scale, and why regulatory intervention may be necessary to bridge this gap.
Proven SAF impact on local air quality: Results from the ALIGHT project measurement campaign showing 40% SAF achieved a 30% reduction in ultrafine particle emissions.
Denmark’s green domestic route: How Norwegian Air Lines will launch the country’s first green domestic route in March 2026 using 40% SAF.
Battery energy storage system and electrification: Implementation of a battery system to store renewable energy and manage power spikes from electric ground support equipment and future electric aircraft charging.
Real-world fuel variability research: The FuelTrack campaign with German Aerospace Centre and SAS that links specific fuel chemistry (aromatics and sulphur content) directly to tailpipe emissions.
Airport-to-airport collaboration on innovation: CPH’s partnership with Schiphol Airport pooling resources on local air quality challenges.
If you LOVED this episode, you’ll also love the conversation we had with Anko van der Werff, President & CEO of Scandinavian Airlines (SAS), who shares the airline’s plans to lead the charge in sustainable aviation. Check it out here. 
Learn more about the innovators who are navigating the industry’s challenges to make sustainable aviation a reality, in our new book ‘Sustainability in the Air: Volume 2’. Click here to learn more.
Feel free to reach out via email to [email protected]. For more content on sustainable aviation, visit our website green.simpliflying.com and join the movement. It’s about time.

Links & More:
Sustainability - Copenhagen Airports 
Groundbreaking study linking jet fuel properties to aircraft emissions - CPH
Copenhagen Airport installs large battery for green energy storage - CPH 
ALIGHT project

In this episode, Dirk Singer speaks with James Hygate, Founder and CEO of Firefly Green Fuels, about one of the more unconventional and potentially scalable sustainable aviation fuel pathways: converting sewage biosolids into jet fuel.
Hygate discusses: 
Why Firefly is “feedstock-led”, and why that matters more than the technology
How sewage biosolids emerged as the preferred feedstock for Firefly due to their abundance, consistency, and increasing difficulty of disposal.
How hydrothermal liquefaction (HTL) works like “a pressure cooker” to turn sewage into biocrude and biochar 
Why Firefly believes its fuel could achieve over 90% lifecycle CO2 savings, potentially even becoming carbon-negative
How sewage-to-SAF could scale in the UK  and why it could “come from left field” in mandate maths
What is required for SAF projects to be bankable including long-term feedstock supply and offtake agreements
How sewage-based SAF can reach cost parity with Jet A
If you LOVED this episode, you’ll also love the conversation we had with Dr Mar Fernández-Méndez, Co-founder of MacroCarbon, who shares how the startup plans to turn seaweed into SAF. Check it out here. 
Learn more about the innovators who are navigating the industry’s challenges to make sustainable aviation a reality, in our new book ‘Sustainability in the Air: Volume 2’. Click here to learn more.
Feel free to reach out via email to [email protected]. For more content on sustainable aviation, visit our website green.simpliflying.com and join the movement. It’s about time.
Links & More:
Firefly Green Fuels
What & How - Firefly
Poop-powered planes: Could jet fuel made from sewage take off? - CNN
Wizz Air and Firefly collaborate on turning human waste into SAF - Biofuels International Magazine

In this episode, we speak with Adam Klauber, Chief Sustainability Officer at World Energy, who has been at the forefront of developing book and claim mechanisms for sustainable aviation fuel since its earliest days.
He discusses:
The co-claims approach: Why aviation needed to diverge from renewable electricity market models by enabling both airlines (scope 1) and their corporate customers (scope 3) to claim emissions reductions from the same SAF molecules, unlocking new sources of funding.
What it took to get early deals done: How some of the earliest SAF buyers like Microsoft moved before the supporting infrastructure was fully in place, including clear registries and standardised accounting rules, and why that early willingness mattered.
Insetting vs offsetting: The moral hazard of buying cheap offsets outside aviation, and how insetting addresses this while maintaining economic efficiency.
Making SAF contracts “bankable”: How long-term commitments from credible corporate buyers can help producers secure debt capital at lower interest rates, thereby lowering financing costs and easing the SAF price premium over time.
Building market infrastructure that benefits the whole sector: Why World Energy deliberately builds frameworks that benefit competitors, recognising that growing the overall SAF market serves everyone’s interests and that no single company wins with only a trickle of supply.
If you LOVED this episode, you’ll also love the conversation we had with Gene Gebolys, founder and CEO of World Energy, who delves into the intricacies and future of SAF. Check it out here. 
Learn more about the innovators who are navigating the industry’s challenges to make sustainable aviation a reality, in our new book ‘Sustainability in the Air: Volume 2’. Click here to learn more.
Feel free to reach out via email to [email protected]. For more content on sustainable aviation, visit our website green.simpliflying.com and join the movement. It’s about time.
Links & More:
World Energy
Blueprints for Bankability - RMI 
Re-thinking the blueprint for financing SAF - SimpliFlying
Efficient, effective decarbonization with carbon insets - World Energy