Clean Getaway: Meat Waste Joins Biofuels At Luxury Jet Show
Kisha Riley 於 7 月之前 修改了此頁面


By Allison Lampert

LAS VEGAS, Oct 22 (Reuters) - At the world's most significant market show in Las Vegas high-end jets are enticing buyers with their sleek shapes, plush cabins - and significantly, their usage of alternative fuels.

Fuel producers and jetmakers are eager to display novel forms of aviation fuel deemed less harmful to the climate, from used cooking oil to the noticeably less waste.

Business jet operators, like airline companies, have acquiesced environmental pressure on air travel and dedicated to halving carbon emissions by 2050 compared with 2005.

Their hope is that embracing eco-friendly fuel to suppress emissions could make company jets more appealing to environmentally conscious buyers - particularly corporations dealing with questions over sustainability from shareholders or green campaign groups.

The schedule of less polluting personal jets could also spare the abundant and popular the negative promotion experienced by Britain's Prince Harry and his other half Meghan over a recent private jet journey to southern France.

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

The current waste-based fuels consist of "fats, grease and oils that are by-products of the food market," said Bryan Sherbacow, chief commercial officer of Boston-based biofuel manufacturer World Energy, which produces fuel from meat waste utilized by Gulfstream.

"All of our product is inedible."

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

FLIGHT SHAMING

Private jets account for less than 0.1% of overall annual carbon emissions internationally, but can give off, usually, as much as 20 times more carbon emissions per passenger mile than jetliners, according to the London-based personal charter firm Victor.

Prince Harry has defended his periodic usage of personal jets to guarantee his household's safety, and has actually said that on the unusual occasions he does not fly commercially he offsets his emissions.

But planemakers say occurrences such as the furore over his travel plan have included fresh difficulties for a market already making every effort to validate its contribution to cutting corporate expenses.

"Incidents of flight shaming including the use of private jets are unfortunate when you think about that our market has provided fuel performance improvements of 40% over the past 40 years," stated Bombardier Aviation President David Coleal.

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

But even an image makeover - with jets sporting stickers like "this airplane flies on sustainable fuels" and organisers including alternative fuel pumps for visiting aircrafts - is not likely to satisfy all critics at the Oct 22-24 high-end jet occasion.

Environmentalists and some analysts remain skeptical that biojetfuels, generally combined 50-50 with kerosene, will make a significant influence on public understandings about high-end travel.

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

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

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

Corporate charter business and specialists are likewise seeing more interest from consumers who desire to buy carbon credits to offset emissions from their flights.

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

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