In this episode, we speak with Valérie Guénon, Vice President of Product Environment Policies at Safran Aircraft Engines. She shares insights into how the company aims to tackle its environmental challenges through innovative engine design and sustainable fuel integration.

Guénon discusses Safran’s comprehensive approach to aviation sustainability, and highlights:

1. The RISE (Revolutionary Innovation for Sustainable Engines) program, developed in partnership with GE Aerospace that features an innovative open fan architecture that could significantly reduce fuel consumption by removing the heavy engine nacelle and optimising propulsive efficiency.
2. Safran’s commitment to environmental research, with the company dedicating 88% of its self-funded research to environmental performance improvements, covering areas like CO2 reduction, noise reduction, and local air pollution mitigation.
3. Safran is actively working to ensure engine compatibility with 100% Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF), addressing challenges beyond just combustion.
4. Through the Renewable Low Carbon Fuels European Alliance, Safran chairs the aviation chamber and helps coordinate industry-wide efforts to scale up SAF production and adoption.
5. The complexities of hydrogen adoption in aviation, drawing from Safran’s experience with rocket propulsion.
6. Safran’s electrification initiatives that focus on smaller aircraft through Safran Electrical & Power.

Throughout the conversation, Guénon emphasises that while engine manufacturers can’t control air traffic growth, they can significantly impact efficiency. 

Guénon also shares her pioneering experience as a woman in aerospace engineering, highlighting how both cultural changes and legislation have improved gender equality in the field.

If you LOVED this episode, you’ll also love the conversation we had with Graham Webb, Chief Sustainability Officer at Pratt and Whitney. 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’. Click here to learn more.

Feel free to reach out via email to podcast@simpliflying.com. For more content on sustainable aviation, visit our website green.simpliflying.com and join the movement. It’s about time.

Links & More:

Sustainability - Safran

How Safran is helping to develop sustainable fuels - Safran 

GE Aviation and Safran launch advanced technology demonstration programme for sustainable engines - ERA 

Safran invests €1bn to develop global MRO network for LEAP engine - Aerospace Manufacturing