Alaskan planes successfully use biofuel
November 10, 2011, 06:28 pm
Two Alaska Airlines flights recently departed from Sea-Tac Airport full of biofuel running the jet engines. One plane was headed to Washington, D.C., the other flew to Portland. The two flights are the first of 75 commercial flights scheduled to depart over the next few weeks that will be running on a 20 percent blend of biofuel.
Komo News reported the biofuel was made by Dynamic Fuels in Louisiana and currently costs six times as much as regular plane fuel. However, the aviation industry expects the adoption of biofuel to result in decreased costs in the long-term. The flights were part of an overall goal of 1 percent of all jet fuel in the world to be a blend of bio-content by 2015.
According to Scripps News, Alaska Airlines paid $476,000 for 28,000 gallons of biofuel at $17 per gallon. But Billy Glover, Boeing vice president for the environmental and aviation policy, said Alaska Airline's decision to invest in biofuel will show other airlines that it is important to go green.
The source reported that Airbus and Boeing are working with other companies to create fuel-efficient planes, and Alaska Airlines is leading the way by streamlining air routes using satellite-based navigation systems. These efforts are in response to studies showing aviation accounts for 2 to 3 percent of the world's carbon dioxide emissions, and that number is sure to increase as air travel expands to emerging markets.
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