Lightning OBT SAF Scoring: Supporting sustainable business travel

Sustainability continues to be a priority for organizations managing business travel, particularly when it comes to aviation, one of the most challenging areas to decarbonize.

To support more informed decision-making at the point of booking, Corporate Travel Management (CTM) integrates SAF Scoring within Lightning OBT, helping travel arrangers and travelers better understand how flight choices align with broader sustainability goals. Rather than prescribing behavior, SAF Scoring is designed to support visibility, comparison, and informed choice within existing travel programs.

CTM partners with RDC Aviation, a leading airline data analytics company, to deliver actionable SAF scores in Lightning for our customers.

“The SAF Rating provides CTM customers with additional context to help them make informed decisions about the sustainable travel options available to them, sitting alongside RDC’s detailed and accurate emissions data in CTM’s Lightning online booking tool. We’re proud to work with CTM to deliver meaningful insights for business travellers.” Gareth Kitching Director of Operations, RDC Aviation.

What is sustainable aviation fuel?

SAF works in the same way as traditional jet fuel, which you’ll often hear it referred to as a “drop-in fuel”, that can be blended with jet fuel and used in commercial airlines with no significant changes to an aircraft or its engine. Today, SAF can be made in three ways, as a biofuel, a waste fuel, or synthetic “e-Fuel”.

• Biofuel: Where crops can be grown and fermented to turn sugar or fat into ethanol.
• Waste Fuel: Used cooking oils, greases and other oils can be refined into jet fuel.
• E-Fuels: Where electricity is used to split water into hydrogen and oxygen, with the hydrogen then combined with carbon dioxide to make drop-in hydrocarbons like diesel and jet fuel.

The International Aviation Travel Authority (IATA) estimates that SAF could contribute around 65% of the reduction in emissions needed by aviation to reach net zero CO2 emissions by 2050.  The largest acceleration is expected in the 2030s as policy support becomes global.

What is SAF scoring in Lightning OBT?

SAF Scoring is a feature within CTM’s Lightning Online Booking Tool that provides visibility into how flight options align with SAF initiatives.

To provide the most comprehensive assessment of airline SAF adoption, the scores displayed in Lightning, provided by RDC Aviation include several different data points, including but not limited to:

• Partnership/development: Agreements between an airline and one provider to test, develop and/or produce SAF.
• SAF offtake agreement: Arrangement between the airline and producer to purchase SAF.
• Stake in production: Partnership in the SAF production (airline as a partner in the company).
• CO2 offset: Airline and/or passenger offset carbon emissions.
• Sustainability program: SAF as a criteria of the airline sustainability program.
• Efficiency of their fleet: Reflection of investment in modern, efficient equipment and aircraft.

A key factor to scoring is the commitment of airlines to sustainable aviation which includes goals for future use of SAF. The specific metrics and data captured by RDC Aviation as part of this assessment and scoring include data on 250 leading world airlines that show:

• Current percentage: Volume of SAF used, which could be network-wide, or, if available, on a particular route shown in Lightning.
• Commitment percentage: Volume of SAF committed to purchase. This could be network-wide or on a shown route.
• Commitment date: The specific date the SAF commitment will be implemented.

How does SAF socring work for business travelers?

When business travelers search for flights in Lightning OBT, SAF Scoring is displayed as part of the booking experience.

This enables travelers to:

• compare flight options using consistent SAF indicators
• understand how different choices align with SAF participation
• balance sustainability considerations with policy, price, and convenience.

Why SAF scoring matters for travel managers

For travel managers, the challenge is often less about intent and more about implementation.

SAF Scoring supports travel programs by:

• making sustainability more visible at the point of booking
• encouraging consideration without adding friction to the booking process
• supporting internal sustainability conversations with practical data points.

By embedding sustainability insights into everyday booking behavior, organizations can move from policy aspiration to practical action.

How SAF scoring supports sustainable travel programs

SAF Scoring complements broader sustainability strategies by focusing on awareness and informed choice.

For many organizations, this supports:

• Greater traveler engagement with sustainability objectives
• More consistent decision-making across regions and teams
• Improved alignment between travel, procurement, and sustainability stakeholders

Rather than positioning sustainability as a post-trip reporting exercise, SAF Scoring helps integrate it into the travel journey itself.

What SAF scoring is, and what it is not

To set clear expectations, SAF Scoring is designed to:

• support comparison and awareness, not offset emissions
• work alongside existing carbon reporting and sustainability tools
• Provide guidance, not judgement, at the point of booking

This ensures organizations can take a measured, credible approach to sustainable travel without over-simplifying a complex challenge.

What this means for your business travel program

SAF scoring in Lightning OBT helps organizations:

• embed sustainability into everyday travel decisions
• support travelers with clearer, more transparent information
• advance sustainability goals without compromising usability or compliance

For travel managers balancing cost, policy, traveler experience, and environmental responsibility, SAF Scoring provides a practical way forward.