Press Release

United Airlines Receives Highest Rating of Any Airline for Climate Action, 3 Other Sustainability Awards

United Airlines is proud to announce that we have been honored with four awards in just the past week, recognizing our work to make environmental sustainability part of the DNA of our operations.

Published 8 years ago | About a 3 minute read

United Airlines is proud to announce that we have been honored with four awards in just the past week, recognizing our work to make environmental sustainability part of the DNA of our operations.

First, we were listed in the Carbon Disclosure Project's (CDP) Leadership Index for minimizing our carbon footprint and ensuring we're following the best practices to address climate change. CDP is an independent, international nonprofit organization that enables companies, cities, states and regions to measure and manage their environmental impacts. Our A-minus rating placed United in the top-tier "Leadership" category, and was the highest rating of any U.S. airline. The average score for companies inside and outside of the airline industry is a "C," so we are proud to be recognized as a leader in our environmental commitments and actions.

"Our leadership score from the CDP validates our Eco-Skies commitment to create a more sustainable airline," said Environmental Strategy and Sustainability Director Natalie Mindrum. "Together we achieved this rating through efficient operations, introduction of newer, more fuel-efficient aircraft, and our industry-leading sustainable aviation biofuel program."

We also received three awards connected to the launch of our ongoing biofuel program. On Tuesday we received the Illinois Governor's Sustainability Award for our 2015 investment in aviation biofuel with Fulcrum BioEnergy, and our introduction of more sustainable customer products from illy and Cowshed, as well as our upcycling initiatives and support for environmental STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) education.

In addition, on Tuesday our biofuel program was also honored to receive the 2016 Airports Going Green Award after being nominated by the Chicago Department of Aviation. This award recognizes the accomplishments of our biofuel program, as well as our outstanding leadership in pursuit of sustainability within the aviation industry. We continue to bring sustainable aviation biofuel into the LAX fuel farm, where it has been blended with traditional fuel since March 2016.

Last week, the Commercial Aviation Alternative Fuels Initiative (CAAFI) also honored us with the CAAFI Commercial Production Trailblazer Award for our pioneering development and use of commercial-scale alternative jet fuel at LAX in partnership with AltAir Fuels.

Finally, we were recently named by the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) as one of the leading airlines in NRDC's third annual Aviation Biofuel Scorecard for 2016, which rates airlines worldwide on the sourcing and use of biofuel, and we were recognized with the Chapter Mission Award by the United States Green Building Council (USGBC) Illinois Chapter for our decades-long commitment to sustainability.

While we are extremely proud of these accomplishments in sustainability, we still consider this just the beginning and will continue to push ourselves and the industry toward a more sustainable future.

To learn more about United's Eco-Skies commitment to the environment, visit united.com/ecoskies.