Clean Getaway: Meat Waste Joins Biofuels At Luxury Jet Show
By Allison Lampert
LAS VEGAS, Oct 22 (Reuters) - At the world's biggest market program in Las Vegas high-end jets are drawing purchasers with their smooth shapes, plush cabins - and significantly, their usage of alternative fuels.
Fuel manufacturers and jetmakers are eager to showcase unique forms of aviation fuel deemed less hazardous to the environment, from utilized cooking oil to the clearly less glamorous meat waste.
Business jet operators, like airlines, have actually bowed to ecological pressure on air travel and dedicated to halving carbon emissions by 2050 compared with 2005.
Their hope is that embracing renewable fuel to curb emissions could make organization jets more attractive to ecologically mindful purchasers - specifically corporations dealing with concerns over sustainability from investors or green campaign groups.
The availability of less contaminating personal jets could likewise spare the abundant and popular the unfavorable promotion experienced by Britain's Prince Harry and his other half Meghan over a current personal jet trip to southern France.
Five Gulfstream jets on display in Las Vegas are using California-produced fuel from inedible beef tallow.
The current waste-based fuels consist of "fats, grease and oils that are byproducts of the food market," stated Bryan Sherbacow, primary commercial officer of Boston-based biofuel producer World Energy, which produces fuel from meat waste utilized by Gulfstream.
"All of our product is inedible."
Some of the other 79 aircraft on screen are anticipated to be powered by 150,000 gallons of other renewable fuel blends anticipated to be pumped at the show.
FLIGHT SHAMING
Private jets account for less than 0.1% of total annual carbon emissions globally, but can discharge, typically, up to 20 times more carbon emissions per guest mile than jetliners, according to the London-based personal charter company Victor.
Prince Harry has defended his occasional use of personal jets to ensure his household's safety, and has actually said that on the rare events he does not fly commercially he offsets his emissions.
But planemakers say occurrences such as the furore over his itinerary have added fresh obstacles for an industry already aiming to justify its contribution to cutting business costs.
"Incidents of flight shaming involving using private jets are regrettable when you consider that our market has provided fuel effectiveness enhancements of 40% over the previous 40 years," Aviation President David Coleal.
Bombardier believes increased sustainable fuel usage will help the industry make inroads with corporations and wealthy purchasers. According to market information, billionaires only have a 19% service jet ownership rate.
But even an image remodeling - with jets sporting sticker labels like "this aircraft flies on renewable fuels" and organisers including alternative fuel pumps for going to planes - is not likely to satisfy all critics at the Oct 22-24 luxury jet event.
Environmentalists and some experts remain doubtful that biojetfuels, normally combined 50-50 with kerosene, will make a substantial effect on public perceptions about luxury travel.
"No quantity of jatropha curcas or Brazil-nut fuel can make service jets look eco-friendly," said air travel analyst Richard Aboulafia.
Demand from service jet operators for eco-friendly fuels now far surpasses supply and their interest might drive future production, Sherbacow said.
World Energy, which produces 40 million gallons of biofuel at its California plant, might broaden production approximately 150 million gallons by 2022.
Corporate charter business and consultants are likewise seeing more interest from customers who wish to buy carbon credits to offset emissions from their flights.
Brian Proctor, CEO of Mente Group, a U.S. consultancy, said emissions contributed in a business jet utilization research study his company recently finished for a Fortune 500 business.
"At the end of the day, I think that price, cost per hour, range, speed and performance, that's still the (sales) driver. But I believe people are ending up being more knowledgeable about the sustainability of operations and how it impacts the planet." (Reporting By Allison Lampert, Editing by Tim Hepher and Alexandra Hudson)