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Clean Getaway: Meat Waste Joins Biofuels At Luxury Jet Show

Doreen Starling edited this page 2025-01-18 03:41:23 -06:00

By Allison Lampert

LAS VEGAS, Oct 22 (Reuters) - At the world's most significant industry program in Las Vegas high-end jets are enticing purchasers with their smooth silhouettes, luxurious cabins - and progressively, their usage of alternative fuels.

Fuel manufacturers and jetmakers are keen to display novel kinds of aviation fuel considered less damaging to the environment, from used cooking oil to the clearly less glamorous meat waste.

Business jet operators, like airlines, have bowed to ecological pressure on air travel and committed to halving carbon emissions by 2050 compared with 2005.

Their hope is that adopting eco-friendly fuel to curb emissions could make business jets more appealing to environmentally mindful buyers - particularly corporations dealing with concerns over sustainability from investors or green project groups.

The availability of less contaminating personal jets could also spare the abundant and famous the unfavorable publicity experienced by Britain's Prince Harry and his better half Meghan over a current private jet journey to southern France.

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

The current waste-based fuels include "fats, grease and oils that are byproducts of the food industry," stated Bryan Sherbacow, primary commercial officer of Boston-based biofuel manufacturer World Energy, which produces fuel from meat waste utilized by Gulfstream.

"All of our product is inedible."

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

FLIGHT SHAMING

Private jets represent less than 0.1% of overall yearly carbon emissions internationally, but can discharge, usually, up to 20 times more carbon emissions per guest mile than jetliners, according to the London-based personal charter company Victor.

Prince Harry has actually protected his periodic use of private jets to ensure his family's safety, and has actually stated that on the unusual events he does not fly commercially he offsets his emissions.

But say incidents such as the furore over his schedule have actually added fresh challenges for a market currently striving to validate its contribution to cutting business expenses.

"Incidents of flight shaming including using personal jets are regrettable when you consider that our industry has provided fuel efficiency enhancements of 40% over the previous 40 years," stated Bombardier Aviation President David Coleal.

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

But even an image remodeling - with jets sporting stickers like "this aircraft flies on sustainable fuels" and organisers adding alternative fuel pumps for checking out planes - is not likely to satisfy all critics at the Oct 22-24 luxury jet event.

Environmentalists and some analysts stay doubtful that biojetfuels, normally combined 50-50 with kerosene, will make a considerable influence on public understandings about high-end travel.

"No quantity of Jatropha or Brazil-nut fuel can make service jets look eco-friendly," said aviation analyst Richard Aboulafia.

Demand from business jet operators for renewable fuels now far exceeds supply and their interest could drive future production, Sherbacow stated.

World Energy, which produces 40 million gallons of biofuel at its California plant, might expand production approximately 150 million gallons by 2022.

Corporate charter companies and experts are also seeing more interest from customers who wish to purchase carbon credits to balance out emissions from their flights.

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

"At the end of the day, I believe that price, expense per hour, variety, speed and efficiency, that's still the (sales) driver. But I think individuals are becoming more familiar with the sustainability of operations and how it affects the planet." (Reporting By Allison Lampert, Editing by Tim Hepher and Alexandra Hudson)