Sustainability In The Air

In this episode, we speak with Louis Saint-Cyr, President of Airlines at Surf Air Mobility, to explore how electric aircraft could transform regional aviation.
He discusses:
Why electrification over SAF: SAF, Saint-Cyr argues, is geared towards larger aircraft and long-haul flying. For a nine-seat island operator, electric aircraft tackle three things at once: carbon, operating cost, and alignment with Hawaii's legislated path to 100% renewable electricity by 2045.
Hawaii as the ideal proving ground: Short 30-40 minute sectors, around 120 inter-island flights a day and battery packs that are not pushed to their limits make the islands well suited to early electric operations. Quieter aircraft could also open up tourism and cargo markets that Mokulele has yet to tap.
What the BETA trial measured: How the Alia's batteries performed in Hawaii's heat and wind, how they degrade, charging capability and turnaround times, and where charging stations should go. The data sets a baseline for how the aircraft evolves in the months and years ahead.
The milestones that matter: FAA certification, battery cycle life under a power-by-the-hour style model, and a workable approach to charging infrastructure with the state of Hawaii. Saint-Cyr warns that if the first operators of electric aircraft go bankrupt, the whole industry suffers.
SurfOS and learning together: How the platform built with Palantir will absorb data from electric operations and bring affordable technology to small Part 135 operators, and why Saint-Cyr invites OEMs such as Electra to pick holes in his economic model.
If you LOVED this episode, you'll also love the conversation we had with Kyle Clark, founder and CEO of BETA Technologies, who explains why simplicity is the key to sustainable aviation. 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 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: 
Surf Air Mobility 
Surf Air Mobility and BETA Technologies announce strategic partnership and aircraft purchase agreement - Business Wire 
BETA and Surf Air Mobility begin Hawaiʻi electric aircraft trials - AviTrader 
Palantir and Surf Air Mobility expand partnership on SurfOS - Business Wire 
Why BETA Technologies sees simplicity as the key to sustainable aviation - SimpliFlying

In this episode, we speak with Ivor van Dartel, CEO and co-founder of VAERIDION, which is developing the Microliner, a 100% electric, nine-passenger fixed-wing aircraft.
He discusses:
Why VAERIDION chose electric aircraft: Despite leading hybrid-electric work at Airbus, Ivor argues that hybrids carry twice the system complexity and still burn fuel. The Microliner has range limits, but within them he believes it will be unbeatable on unit economics, just as electrification has won on cost in road, rail and shipping.
The case for nine seats: Battery energy density points to a six-tonne aircraft with up to 500 km of range. That lines up with a fleet of around 21,000 nine-seat aircraft, many of them old, and a certification category whose costs run to millions rather than billions.
Batteries in the wing: Placing heavy batteries in the wing reduces bending loads and allows a lighter structure. Because the wing flexes, VAERIDION uses 60 small, identical packs fixed to the wing ribs, each delivering 900 volts, all designed, built and tested in-house.
Why rail is not the whole answer for regional travel: Ivor shares that long-distance rail carries only a fraction of the 1.4 billion trips made each year on 150 to 600 km journeys. Europe's regional airports, around 2,500 of them usable, could offer point-to-point links without new infrastructure.
What success looks like: With launch customer ASL Group and more than 100 commitments announced at the Berlin Air Show, Ivor says success means operators earning revenue and profit from the Microliner, and passengers choosing it because it is the most convenient option.
If you LOVED this episode, you'll also love the conversation we had with Kyle Clark, founder and CEO of BETA Technologies, on why simplicity is the key to electric aviation. 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 podcast@simpliflying.com. For more content on sustainable aviation, visit our website simpliflying.com/green and join the movement. It's about time.
Links & More: 
VÆRIDION 
The Microliner - VÆRIDION 
ASL has placed an aircraft order with VÆRIDION - ASL Group 
VÆRIDION surpasses 100 new aircraft commitments following successful PDR - ASD News 
GKN Aerospace to support VÆRIDION battery-electric aircraft programme - Aerospace Testing International

In this episode, we speak with Tien Nguyen, founding partner of Vietnam-based Earth Venture Capital, who explains why the venture capital firm is betting on science-led deep tech, from advanced nuclear to hydrogen, and what that approach tells us about financing the next generation of aviation technology.
Nguyen discusses
Earth VC’s mission to make the physical economy more efficient through science-led deep tech 
How Earth VC distinguishes a measurable scientific breakthrough from an incremental improvement 
How research institutions, trusted scientific networks and independent due diligence shape the fund’s investment pipeline 
The three commercialisation gaps facing hard-technology companies, and why Nguyen would rather see a company fail quickly than become a “zombie” 
Supercritical Solutions and the economics of producing clean hydrogen for direct industrial use 
How HyLight’s hydrogen-powered airships could reduce the cost of inspecting electricity lines and provide an early specialist market for hydrogen aviation 
Why Earth VC sources technology globally but treats deployment as a local problem
Nguyen’s advice to founders: raise capital against a defined technical, regulatory or commercial risk rather than simply buying more time 

If you LOVED this episode, you’ll also love the conversation we had with Elvis Ebikade Founder & Principal at Vansam Advisory. 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 podcast@simpliflying.com. For more content on sustainable aviation, visit our website green.simpliflying.com and join the movement. It’s about time.
Links and more
Earth Venture Capital
Key Questions on Energy and AI - IEA
Aalo achieves criticality - Aalo Atomics 
Blykalla and IFE partner to advance key primary systems for scalable SMR deployment - Blykalla 
Supercritical, ScottishPower and Proton Ventures share findings from GreeNH3 feasibility study - Supercritical

In this episode, we speak with Paul Bloom, CEO of Gevo, who shares how low-carbon fuels, carbon capture, and technology are coming together to accelerate aviation’s path to net zero.
He discusses:
Why Gevo stepped away from the DOE loan guarantee: The DOE loan guarantee was always one of several potential financing options for Gevo. When enhanced oil recovery (EOR) for Gevo’s CO2 co-product became a requirement, the lack of oil and gas infrastructure in North Dakota made it difficult to secure a bankable offtake agreement. Gevo is now pursuing private credit and bank financing for its ATJ-30 project.
Carbon as a second product line: For every ton of fuel, Gevo also produces about a ton of CO2, which is sequestered and stored more than a mile underground. This helps cut the fuel’s carbon intensity by a little over 30 points, and the stored carbon also generates removal credits that Gevo sells to corporate buyers.
Tracking how the fuel was made: Gevo’s Verity platform uses distributed ledger technology to track inputs in the fuel production process, bringing transparency, traceability, and trust to the fuel’s entire carbon story.
The case for regional SAF supply: Rising jet fuel prices and the global availability of carbohydrate feedstocks strengthen the case for regional supply of SAF. Bloom views ATJ-30 as the first in a series of modular plants that could be deployed across regional markets to meet the rising fuel demand.
If you LOVED this episode, you’ll also love the conversation we had with Dr. Patrick Gruber, former CEO of Gevo. 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 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:
Gevo
SAF: Our cost-competitive synthetic aviation fuel can deliver sustainability - Gevo 
Gevo North Dakota: Renewable fuels and carbon abatement - Gevo
Gevo advances BECCS strategy to meet rising demand for durable carbon removal - CarbonCredits.Com

In this episode, recorded at the Farnborough Airshow 2026, we speak with Christoph Pereira, CEO of Software as a Service (SaaS), Aerospace Carbon Solutions and Sustainability at GE Aerospace, about how one of the world’s largest engine maker is using software, data and hybrid electric propulsion to decarbonise aviation.
He discusses:
Why GE Aerospace runs a software business alongside its engine franchise, and how software focused on safety, efficiency and resilience can leverage more capacity from constrained airspace immediately.
How GE Aerospace, NASA and BETA Technologies demonstrated hybrid-electric propulsion at 30,000 feet aboard a modified Saab aircraft.
How the collaboration with BETA, struck less than a year earlier, put a jointly developed turbogenerator on display in BETA’s autonomous MV250 eVTOL at the Farnborough Airshow. The vehicle offers a longer range, higher speed and much lower cost than traditional helicopters.
How tools like SIGNPOST help airlines with environmental compliance at the lowest marginal cost, whilst DecisionX delivers aviation-specific weather insight on contrails, icing and turbulence.
How GE Aerospace’s FLIGHT DECK manages a 20-year engine development cycle alongside six-month software builds.
If you LOVED this episode, you’ll also love the conversation we had with Kyle Clark, Founder and CEO of BETA Technologies, who shares the realities of bringing electric aircraft into operation. 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 podcast@simpliflying.com. For more content on sustainable aviation, visit our website simpliflying.com/green and join the movement. It’s about time.
Links & More:
GE Aerospace
NASA, GE Aerospace work enables hybrid-electric flight demonstration - NASA 
GE Aerospace partners with NASA, BETA Technologies, and Boeing on world’s first high-altitude hybrid electric flight - GE Aerospace 
BETA Technologies unveils MV250, delivering greater range, higher speed, and lower costs for military logistics - BETA Technologies