1 Clean Getaway: Meat Waste Joins Biofuels At Luxury Jet Show

Bryon Wickham edited this page 2025-01-13 19:19:37 +08:00

By Allison Lampert

LAS VEGAS, Oct 22 (Reuters) - At the world's greatest industry show in Las Vegas high-end jets are drawing buyers with their streamlined shapes, plush cabins - and increasingly, their use of alternative fuels.

Fuel manufacturers and jetmakers are eager to showcase unique types of air travel fuel deemed less harmful to the environment, from used cooking oil to the definitely less glamorous meat waste.

Business jet operators, like airline companies, have bowed to environmental pressure on air travel and dedicated to cutting in half carbon emissions by 2050 compared to 2005.

Their hope is that adopting eco-friendly fuel to suppress emissions might make service jets more appealing to environmentally conscious buyers - particularly corporations dealing with questions over sustainability from shareholders or green project groups.

The accessibility of less polluting private jets might likewise spare the abundant and famous the unfavorable publicity experienced by Britain's Prince Harry and his wife Meghan over a recent personal jet journey to southern France.

Five Gulfstream jets on display screen in Las Vegas are using California-produced fuel from inedible beef tallow.

The most current waste-based fuels include "fats, grease and oils that are byproducts of the food market," said Bryan Sherbacow, primary business officer of Boston-based biofuel producer World Energy, which from meat waste used by Gulfstream.

"All of our item is inedible."

A few of the other 79 airplane on display screen are anticipated to be powered by 150,000 gallons of other sustainable fuel blends anticipated to be pumped at the show.

FLIGHT SHAMING

Private jets account for less than 0.1% of total annual carbon emissions internationally, however can produce, typically, up to 20 times more carbon emissions per guest mile than jetliners, according to the London-based private charter firm Victor.

Prince Harry has safeguarded his periodic use of private jets to ensure his family's security, and has said that on the unusual celebrations he does not fly commercially he offsets his emissions.

But planemakers state events such as the furore over his travel plan have actually included fresh obstacles for an industry already making every effort to validate its contribution to cutting business costs.

"Incidents of flight shaming including making use of personal jets are unfortunate when you think about that our industry has actually provided fuel effectiveness enhancements of 40% over the past 40 years," said Bombardier Aviation President David Coleal.

Bombardier thinks increased sustainable fuel usage will assist the industry make inroads with corporations and rich buyers. According to market data, billionaires only have a 19% company jet ownership rate.

But even an image transformation - with jets sporting sticker labels like "this airplane flies on renewable fuels" and organisers adding alternative fuel pumps for checking out planes - is unlikely to satisfy all critics at the Oct 22-24 high-end jet occasion.

Environmentalists and some experts remain doubtful that biojetfuels, normally mixed 50-50 with kerosene, will make a significant impact on public understandings about high-end travel.

"No quantity of jatropha curcas or Brazil-nut fuel can make business jets look eco-friendly," said aviation expert Richard Aboulafia.

Demand from organization jet operators for eco-friendly fuels now far exceeds supply and their interest could drive future production, Sherbacow said.

World Energy, which produces 40 million gallons of biofuel at its California plant, could broaden production up to 150 million gallons by 2022.

Corporate charter business and consultants are also seeing more interest from customers who want to purchase carbon credits to offset emissions from their flights.

Brian Proctor, CEO of Mente Group, a U.S. consultancy, stated emissions played a function in a business jet usage study his business recently finished for a Fortune 500 company.

"At the end of the day, I think that rate, expense per hour, variety, speed and performance, that's still the (sales) motorist. But I think people are ending up being more knowledgeable about the sustainability of operations and how it affects the planet." (Reporting By Allison Lampert, Editing by Tim Hepher and Alexandra Hudson)