First commercial airliner to use bio-Jet Fuel

Posted by A. Caleb Hartley on January 16th, 2008 filed in Air Transport, airline, airliner, alternative, aviation, business, carbon, carbon footprint, climate change, commercial, demonstration, emissions, energy, environment, flies, fuel, gas, gasoline, Great Britain, green, jet, Natural, oil, renewable, transportation, UK, United Kingdom, Virgin

Sir Richard Branson, President of Virgin Atlantic, is apparently an environmentastic! reader.  Not long after posting about the very first bio-jet fuel powered flight in any aircraft, Branson’s Virgin Atlantic has announced that the company will complete a demonstration flight (no passengers) from London to Amsterdam – using a Boeing 747 running only on biofuel – in February.

This will be the first time a commercial aircraft has run biofuel in-flight. Some airlines and Boeing have joined up in a major initiative to discover sources of sustainable aircraft fuel for the future. 

Branson stated, “This breakthrough will help Virgin Atlantic to fly its planes using clean fuel sooner than expected. The demonstration flight next month will give us crucial knowledge that we can use to dramatically reduce our carbon footprint. Virgin Group pledged to invest all its profits from its transportation companies towards developing clean energy and with this breakthrough we are well down the path to achieving our goals.”

Virgin Atlantic’s vision for the aviation industry’s possibilities is demonstrated by using clean-fuel technology to reduce carbon emissions, and the company’s drive to reduce its environmental impact wherever possible is evident in this announcement, in addition to the other moves it has made, including becoming the first airline in the world to allow passengers to purchase carbon offsets while in the air – during flight. Virgin also placed the largest order for Boeing 787 Dreamliners in Europe in 2007, ordering 15 of the aircraft, and options to purchase another 28 aircraft. The Dreamliner is 60% quieter and uses 30% less fuel than the aircraft that will be replaceed in the airline’s fleet.

This information was announced on Ground Support Worldwide.

Namaste,
A. Caleb Hartley

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Some people get it. What do you think about Branson’s (and Virgin’s) announcement? Let it fly in the comments!

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