Mon, Jul 18, 2011
Lufthansa, Airbus Say It Is A Significant Step Forward Towards
Sustainable Aviation
Lufthansa says it has launched the world’s first ever
daily commercial passenger flights using biofuel. The four return
daily flights between Hamburg and Frankfurt will be the first in
the world to use a biofuel blend using 50% Hydro-processed Esters
and Fatty Acids (HEFA). This follows the approval for the use of
this type of fuel by the world fuels standards body, the ASTM on
July 1st and the publication of the approved standards on July
13th.
The aircraft is an Airbus A321, equipped with IAE engines
(International Aero Engines). Airbus’ role is to provide
technical assistance and to monitor the fuel properties. The daily
flights will initially continue for six months as part of the
‘Burn Fair’ R&T project to study the long term
impact of sustainable biofuels on aircraft performance.
“Lufthansa is the world’s first airline to utilize
biofuel in daily flight operations. This is a further consistent
step in the sustainability strategy, which Lufthansa has for years
been successfully pursuing. We want to secure future sustainable
mobility by conducting research and development work today,”
said Christoph Franz, Lufthansa CEO.
“Fuel quality is a critical issue in aviation. Neste
Oil’s NExBTL technology is very well-suited to producing
aviation fuel that meets the aviation industry’s toughest
quality standard,” says Matti Lievonen, Neste Oil's President
and CEO. “Being a pioneer in this area, we are very proud to
co-operate with Airbus and Lufthansa. We believe that renewable
aviation fuels have real potential for the future.”
“Airbus is proud of its role as catalyst in bringing
together various stakeholders to speed up the commercialization of
biofuels. These daily biofuel flights are a significant step
forward in our industry-wide pursuit of a sustainable future for
aviation,” said Tom Enders, Airbus President and CEO.
The renewable aviation biofuel, is being provided by
Finland-based Neste Oil and all of the renewable raw materials used
to produce it (NExBTL) comply with the EU’s stringent
sustainability criteria and are fully traceable back to their
source.
Airbus’ alternative fuels roadmap aims to make aviation
biofuel a reality by bringing together stakeholders in a
‘value chain’ to speed up its commercialisation in a
socially responsible way. By providing technical expertise and data
collected from a series of alternative fuel flights, Airbus has
been at the forefront helping obtain today’s 50% biofuel
approval.
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