Air Canada and Airbus to accelerate SAF production in Canada

Air Canada and Airbus plan to launch a co-investment platform to accelerate Sustainable Aviation Fuel production in Canada, combining investment, industry collaboration and corporate SAF demand to support aviation decarbonisation.

Summary:

Air Canada and Airbus have announced plans to establish a jointly funded Sustainability Co-Investment Platform, committing up to C$13.7 million (US$10 million) to help accelerate commercial-scale Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) production in Canada.
The initiative aims to strengthen Canada’s SAF ecosystem by supporting project development, encouraging industry collaboration and advocating for policy frameworks that enable domestic SAF production at scale.
Airbus has also signed a five-year agreement with Air Canada’s Leave Less Travel Program, helping stimulate SAF demand while reducing lifecycle emissions associated with corporate business travel.

Air Canada and Airbus are uniting their shared commitment to aviation decarbonisation, announcing their intent to establish a jointly funded Sustainability Co-Investment Platform. This agreement states a shared objective to invest up to approximately C$13.7 million (US$10 million), through the platform to support a commercial-scale Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) industry in Canada. Both companies are confident that, with a supportive public policy framework in place, this investment can serve as a catalyst for the broader Canadian SAF ecosystem.

“Air Canada is proud to help advance aviation’s energy transition in Canada,” said Valerie Durand, Vice President, Airport Affairs, Corporate Real Estate and Sustainability, Air Canada. “Through this joint initiative with Airbus, we are taking meaningful steps toward supporting domestic SAF production, helping corporate customers address the emissions associated with business travel, and contributing to a lower-carbon path for the industry. With continued industry collaboration and a supportive policy environment, we are confident this momentum can accelerate.”

Key focus areas include accelerating a jointly agreed Canadian SAF project toward a Final Investment Decision (FID). While Air Canada and Airbus intend to drive this investment, both companies look forward to continuing their constructive collaboration with government partners to establish the right structural frameworks to support SAF production to emerge at scale in Canada. Their ongoing joint advocacy alongside the Canadian Council for Sustainable Aviation Fuels (C-SAF) reflects a shared commitment to working with federal and provincial governments. By aligning industry initiatives with supportive public policy mechanisms, they can successfully champion domestic SAF production and price competitiveness, with the objective to make renewable fuels available for the Canadian aerospace industry and to preserve affordability of air travel.

“I want to thank Air Canada for this very important joint sustainability initiative,” said Julie Kitcher, Chief Sustainability Officer and Communications, Airbus. “Decarbonising aviation will require deep industry collaboration and decades of investment in new sources of renewable energy. By launching this co-investment platform and making a long-term commitment to Air Canada’s Leave Less Travel Programme, we will help to stimulate the production of, and demand for, SAF in Canada. The country has a vast feedstock potential. When combined with a supportive policy framework, it can contribute to the sector’s decarbonisation ambitions and create significant economic growth and job creation.”

Complementing this foundational investment, the initiative introduces a vehicle for corporate partners to stimulate domestic SAF demand through Air Canada’s Leave Less Travel Program. Demonstrating its commitment, Airbus has signed a long-term, five-year Leave Less Travel Program Agreement. As part of this parallel corporate travel partnership, which distributes verified SAF environmental attributes to participants, Airbus will purchase SAF environmental attributes associated with over 60,000 litres of SAF for its first allocation. Through this programme, Air Canada will track Airbus’ greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions associated with its corporate travel and remove verified SAF environmental attributes on the company’s behalf. Although in-sector emissions reductions are not a substitute for direct emissions reductions at the source, this corporate partnership is a key tool in supporting the scaling up of SAF and will allow Airbus to lower lifecycle emissions associated with its employees’ business travel.

Hear more from Air Canada at the 20^th anniversary FTE Global, taking place in Dallas, Texas, on 8 to 10 September 2026. Tom Stevens, VP Customer Experience and Service Operations, Air Canada, is participating in a session titled ‘Towards the smart apron: Automating the turnaround process’.

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