Asia-Pacific aviation growth must align with decarbonisation push

The aviation industry is balancing rapid growth, with passenger traffic expected to double to 10 billion by 2050, alongside an urgent, high-stakes need to decarbonize a sector responsible for 2–3% of global emissions. Key strategies focus on scaling Sustainable Aviation Fuels (SAF), optimizing fleet efficiency, and investing in emerging technologies such as hydrogen.

The Asia-Pacific region is home to 60% of the world’s population, with many people living in island nations both large and small. The most straightforward way to connect people and goods across such a vast and dispersed area is by air.

Beyond geography, the growth of the middle class over the last 50 years, with access to higher disposable incomes, has opened new opportunities for business and tourism in the region. After experiencing the fastest passenger growth in the world in 2025, Asia-Pacific is set to double passenger numbers by 2043, according to IATA’s Asia-Pacific Air Travel Market: Opportunities and Challenges report. In short, air transport is a critical means of connecting people, economies and cultures across the region.

However, the same geography that necessitates air travel also makes the region particularly vulnerable to the impacts of climate change, especially rising sea levels and extreme weather events. Asia-Pacific therefore represents a clear example of the need to decarbonise aviation, a region where air travel is a vital lifeline, but where the effects of climate change are already becoming evident.

Fortunately, the region is also rich with opportunities to scale up Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) production. SAF is a critical lever to reduce carbon emissions, and the Asia-Pacific region has a unique opportunity to lead this transition.

The region is forecast to produce 40% of the world’s SAF by 2050, according to IATA’s Global Feedstock Assessment for SAF Production: Outlook to 2050. Governments across the region are mobilising with targets, mandates and policy frameworks to accelerate SAF adoption.

Several governments have already begun laying the groundwork. Singapore will introduce a SAF levy for all passenger and cargo flights departing the country from October 1, 2026, supporting its 1% SAF target by the end of the year. Japan has set an ambition of 10% SAF usage by 2030, while South Korea plans to introduce a 1% SAF blending mandate from 2027, with a long-term roadmap to reach 10% by 2035.

Thailand has signed an MoU with airlines to develop a SAF usage mandate, expected to be announced soon. Further south, the Australian government has committed AUD 1.1 billion in production incentives for low-carbon liquid fuels, including SAF. Meanwhile, Indonesia has proposed a 1% SAF blending target by 2027.

Industry players are also stepping up to accelerate the transition. Airbus is actively supporting the emergence of SAF production through cross-industry collaboration. The company has engaged in several partnerships and investments across the region.

These include MoUs with feedstock owners such as CP Group in Thailand, fuel producers including Pertamina in Indonesia and CNAF in China, and partnerships with organisations such as the Asia Pacific Sustainable Aviation Centre to help harmonise standards, supply chains and production capabilities.

Airlines are also part of these collaborations. In 2022, Airbus partnered with Qantas to co-invest USD 200 million in a fund aimed at kickstarting Australia’s biofuels industry.

This has already led to investment in an alcohol-to-jet fuel facility being developed by Jet Zero Australia, along with a more recent investment through Australian venture capital firm Climate Tech Partners. To further accelerate SAF production globally and in the region, Airbus and Cathay Group announced in October 2025 a joint investment of up to USD 70 million.

While SAF is a critical solution today, alternative energy sources will also play an important role in the future. Several regional airlines, airports, energy providers and industry players have joined the Hydrogen Hubs at Airports network to study the infrastructure required for liquid hydrogen supply chains. Participants include Changi Airport in Singapore, as well as Kansai Airports and Kawasaki Heavy Industries in Japan.

With SAF serving as a key decarbonisation lever, Airbus believes the energy transition must place people at the centre. Given the region’s socioeconomic diversity and varying levels of development, Asia-Pacific offers an ideal environment to demonstrate the possibilities of a just transition.

Leveraging the broader co-benefits of SAF could also strengthen community resilience. For example, collecting agricultural residues for SAF feedstock instead of burning them could significantly reduce air pollution. Investments in SAF production facilities could also revitalise remote communities.