SkyTeam announces winners of The Aviation Challenge 2025
The Aviation Challenge saw 22 airlines achieve record fuel savings through operational tweaks, SAF use, and award-winning innovations from KLM to Kenya Airways.
SkyTeam has revealed the winners of The Aviation Challenge (TAC) 2025, recognising airlines driving measurable progress in sustainable aviation. The awards ceremony, hosted by SAS in Copenhagen on 22 January 2026, celebrated achievements across categories spanning direct impact, organisational transformation, leadership, and inspiration.
Now in its fourth year, TAC 2025 brought together 22 participating airlines who completed more than 80 showcase flights — the highest number to date.
The results speak for themselves: participating airlines achieved an average 13.5% improvement in CO2 intensity compared to their standard operations, and a 12% reduction compared to the industry average.
These gains came through operational enhancements, including route optimisation, maintenance improvements, weight reduction, and increased use of Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF).
A total of 224 solutions and initiatives were submitted for consideration. Each entry was assessed against comprehensive technical criteria by aviation and sustainability experts from the Netherlands Aerospace Centre (NLR) and PA Consulting. Winners were selected by an independent jury of industry leaders, including Dirk Singer, Head of Sustainability at SimpliFlying, as well as representatives from ACI World, Air Transport Action Group, Cargolux Airlines, EUROCONTROL, Fiskars Group, and Copenhagen Airports.
Several winning initiatives stood out for their innovation and scalability. KLM Cityhopper took home the Pioneer of the Year award for its 100% SAF ticket pilot, which embedded the full SAF surcharge directly into ticket prices, a bold experiment to test customer acceptance and normalise SAF adoption. KLM also won Best Showcase Flight for organising 28 flights that achieved the lowest CO2 intensity in TAC history.
Kenya Airways earned two major recognitions. The carrier won Most Impactful Solution for Catering by eliminating single-use plastic catering items network-wide, while Miriam Wangombe was named Game Changer of the Year for delivering significant waste reduction through initiatives ranging from upcycled textiles to farm-to-fork programs.
Other notable winners included Air Europa for AI-driven flight optimisation, Delta for scaling foam-based engine wash technology, and Virgin Atlantic for its cross-industry collaboration on wake energy retrieval, with a ‘flying geese’ style demonstration flight showcasing the potential for fuel savings.
TUI’s Tiger Team earned Team of the Year recognition for building coalitions both inside and outside the airline to deliver credible operational and waste outcomes with clear pathways to scale.
Patrick Roux, SkyTeam CEO, emphasised the importance of collective action: “Year after year, TAC continues to demonstrate the power of collective action in delivering meaningful progress.”
The Aviation Challenge continues to prove that when airlines collaborate and share knowledge, the industry can accelerate its transition toward more sustainable operations, one showcase flight at a time.
The full list of TAC 2025 participants included airlines from Aerolineas Argentinas to Virgin Atlantic, demonstrating the global reach of this collaborative initiative.