In this episode, we speak with Matthew Ridley, Director of Sustainability and Innovation at the oneworld Alliance, who shares the story behind the groundbreaking $150 million Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) fund launched in partnership with the alliance’s member airlines and Breakthrough Energy Ventures (BEV).

Ridley discusses:

• The alliance investment advantage: How pooling resources across oneworld members creates access to world-class venture capital expertise, superior deal flow, more diverse portfolios, and geographical networks.
• Breakthrough Energy’s unprecedented value: Why partnering with BEV provides access to talent airlines struggle to attract, plus synergies with investments in nuclear fusion, energy transmission, and geologic hydrogen.
• Next-generation focus vs. current needs: How the oneworld BEV fund targets technologies that can take aviation beyond 5-10% SAF adoption to truly change the trajectory of decarbonisation, complementing existing investments.
• Breaking the alliance mould: How oneworld moved beyond traditional codeshares and interlining to tackle “initiatives of scale”, and how they attracted Singapore Airlines to join despite not being a oneworld member.
• Reframing aviation’s challenge: Why the problem isn’t aviation itself, but rather the emissions from jet fuel, the only aspect of flight that hasn’t changed since the Kitty Hawk.

Ridley also shares insights from his seven years building IAG’s Hangar 51, where he led first-mover investments in ZeroAvia and LanzaJet, and explains why SAF isn’t a transition fuel but rather a permanent solution once emissions are addressed.

If you LOVED this episode, you’ll also love the conversation we had with Pasha Saleh, Head of Corporate Development at Alaska Airlines, who shares how the airline is investing in sustainable aviation technologies to achieve its ambitious climate goals. 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 - oneworld 

oneworld becomes first airline alliance to join IATA CO2 connect - IATA 

oneworld airline partners join with Breakthrough Energy Ventures to invest in new SAF technologies - GreenAir News 

How Alaska Star Ventures is funding the future of sustainable aviation - SimpliFlying