Sustainable Aviation
Protecting aviation’s licence to grow in the transition to net zero
How we helped
Industry
Client
Sustainable Aviation
Our role
Cavendish developed a corporate affairs programme designed to strengthen Sustainable Aviation’s political profile and influence across Westminster.
Working across Parliament, party conferences and wider political stakeholder networks, we positioned Sustainable Aviation more prominently within debates around industrial strategy, decarbonisation and the future competitiveness of UK aviation.
Alongside targeted engagement around SAF production and investment frameworks, we mapped the regional footprint of proposed SAF facilities and used this to engage political stakeholders whose constituencies and regions could benefit from future jobs, investment and industrial growth if the UK successfully scaled domestic SAF production.
The challenge
Sustainable Aviation brings together major airlines, airports, aerospace manufacturers and fuel producers from across the UK aviation sector, including organisations such as British Airways, Virgin Atlantic, Heathrow Airport, Airbus and Rolls-Royce, to help shape the industry’s pathway to net zero.
As political and public scrutiny around aviation emissions intensified, the sector faced growing pressure to demonstrate a credible pathway to decarbonisation while maintaining the UK’s connectivity, competitiveness and future growth potential.
A central tension within the debate was sustainable aviation fuel (SAF). While government increasingly viewed SAF as essential to decarbonising aviation, major questions remained around how domestic production capacity would be funded, incentivised and delivered at scale.
Sustainable Aviation wanted to strengthen political confidence in the sector’s transition pathway while securing support for the policy and investment frameworks needed to accelerate SAF production and future low-carbon aviation technologies.
The impact
Our work helped strengthen Sustainable Aviation’s credibility and visibility during a critical period for aviation decarbonisation policy.
The programme supported stronger engagement between the coalition and policymakers across transport, business and net zero policy, helping position the sector as a constructive contributor to the UK’s wider industrial and energy transition strategy.
During the campaign period, the Government’s Sustainable Aviation Fuel mandate became law — a major policy milestone for both the coalition and the wider aviation sector.