Key facts
- Gallego said oil companies producing SAF are not producing enough to meet mandated targets.
- Gallego told the Financial Times: "We have mandates for things that do not exist."
- UK airlines must currently use 3.7% SAF in their fuel mix, with the requirement due to rise next year.
- The SAF share is expected to reach 10% by the end of the decade, per the report.
- IAG said pre-tax profit fell 16% to €3bn in the nine months to end-September on higher jet fuel prices.
- UK ministers are consulting on requiring second or third-generation SAF, which is more expensive than standard SAF.
Luis Gallego, chief executive of International Airlines Group, said on November 10, 2026 that planned environmental charges on airlines would "kill" the European aviation industry and push up fares. IAG owns British Airways, Vueling and Aer Lingus.
Gallego told the Financial Times: "We have mandates for things that do not exist." He said oil companies that produce sustainable aviation fuel are not producing enough to meet the mandated targets, and that "all the European airlines will have a major cost disadvantage to global competitors and this is going to have consequences."
British airlines' fuel mix must currently be 3.7% SAF. The requirement is due to rise next year and is expected to reach 10% by the end of the decade, according to the report. UK ministers have held a consultation on the plans, in which one official said "a common sense approach" to aviation fuel would let carriers "keep costs down and make it cheaper for families to go on holiday." The consultation considers requiring UK airlines to buy second or third-generation SAF, made from non-food waste or electricity, which is more expensive than standard SAF.
IAG reported pre-tax profit fell 16% to €3bn in the nine months to the end of September. The group attributed the decline to a "significant increase in jet fuel prices from March onwards," which it said was caused by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz following the outbreak of war in the Middle East.