Top aircraft lessors sow doubts over green fuel silver bullet

Dublin conference told sustainable aviation fuel would cost 'extraordinary sums of taxpayers' money' to make happen

Aengus Kelly, CEO of the world's largest aircraft leasing firm AerCap said given aviation accounts for an estimated 2-3% of global carbon emissions, the scale of investment for green fuel could amount to 'a poor use of a scarce resource'.

The world's two largest aircraft lessors said governments will need to invest huge sums of taxpayers' money if they want the fleets of the future to fly mainly on greener fuel, and the head of Dublin-headquartered AerCap doubted whether it would be worth their while.

Aviation is not an easy industry to decarbonise compared with other forms of transport and the industry has long argued incentives will be needed to massively ramp up the production of fuels made from organic material or waste.