The Sustainable Aviation Test Environment (SATE), part of the Innovate UK Future Flight Challenge, is the UK’s first operationally based low-carbon aviation test centre, based at Kirkwall Airport on Orkney.
Led by the Highlands and Islands Transport Partnership (HITRANS), SATE brings together a national consortium of industry partners, public sector bodies and academia which work with a range of regional businesses and stakeholders to apply state-of-the-art aviation technology to deliver targeted economic growth.
The Highlands and Islands represents an ideal “living laboratory” for emergent aviation technologies, demonstrating their practical applications in addressing connectivity challenges, as well as creating an emerging new sector with significant job creation potential. SATE is at the forefront in progressing both the UK and Scottish government’s aviation aspirations and has already delivered new airport infrastructure and demonstrated hybrid-electric aircraft and autonomous logistics.
The SATE programme aspires to become the UK Centre of Excellence for Sustainable Regional Aviation Systems.
The history of SATE:
November 2020 – SATE 1 commenced
August 2021 – Construction of a new SATE testing facility at Kirkwall Airport
August 2021 – Ampaire’s first hybrid-electric flight in Scotland (Wick-Kirkwall)
October 2021 – Windracers longest BVLOS flight in the UK through Kirkwall & Shetland operations
2022 – Completed feasibility studies on electric and hydrogen demand and low carbon surface access
July 2022 – SATE 2 commenced
October 2023 – Published feasibility study on integrating hybrid airships into regional transport networks
October 2023 – ARC Aerosystems completed tethered trials of largest unmanned air vehicle in Europe at Wick Airport
May 2024 – Hosted Taking Flight, Scotland’s first regional sustainable aviation conference
August 2024 – Successful Windracers trials of self-flying cargo aircraft in Orkney
August 2024 – SATE confirmed as one of six participants in Civil Aviation Authority sandbox to safely integrate BVLOS drones into UK airspace
February 2025 – SATE selected as one of 13 projects for latest phase of the Civil Aviation Authority’s Hydrogen Sandbox
While the SATE facilities are based at Kirkwall Airport, SATE 2 is working across several Highlands & Islands communities and matching the new technology with practical use cases to benefit the region.
Use cases developed in SATE have been, and will continue to be, supported by Orkney, Shetland, Western Isles and Highland councils. Use case projects from the initial phase include serving the NHS, NatureScot, Orkney Food and Drink, Streamline Shipping and Royal Mail.
sate.scot 