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Clean Getaway: Meat Waste Joins Biofuels At Luxury Jet Show

By Allison Lampert

LAS VEGAS, Oct 22 (Reuters) – At the world’s greatest market show in Las Vegas luxury jets are enticing buyers with their smooth silhouettes, plush cabins – and significantly, their use of alternative fuels.

Fuel manufacturers and jetmakers are eager to showcase novel types of aviation fuel deemed less damaging to the environment, from used cooking oil to the definitely less glamorous meat waste.

Business jet operators, like airlines, have bowed to environmental pressure on aviation and devoted to cutting in half carbon emissions by 2050 compared to 2005.

Their hope is that adopting sustainable fuel to curb emissions could make company jets more attractive to ecologically conscious purchasers – particularly corporations facing concerns over from investors or green campaign groups.

The accessibility of less contaminating personal jets could likewise spare the rich and well-known the unfavorable promotion experienced by Britain’s Prince Harry and his partner Meghan over a current private jet journey to southern France.

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

The newest waste-based fuels include “fats, grease and oils that are by-products of the food industry,” stated Bryan Sherbacow, chief business officer of Boston-based biofuel producer World Energy, which produces fuel from meat waste used by Gulfstream.

“All of our item is inedible.”

Some of the other 79 aircraft 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 overall annual carbon emissions globally, but can release, on average, approximately 20 times more carbon emissions per guest mile than jetliners, according to the London-based private charter firm Victor.

Prince Harry has actually defended his periodic usage of personal jets to ensure his family’s security, and has said that on the uncommon occasions he does not fly commercially he offsets his emissions.

But planemakers say occurrences such as the furore over his travel plan have added fresh obstacles for an industry currently making every effort to justify its contribution to cutting business costs.

“Incidents of flight shaming including the use of personal jets are unfortunate when you think about that our industry has actually delivered fuel performance improvements of 40% over the past 40 years,” said Bombardier Aviation President David Coleal.

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

But even an image transformation – with jets sporting sticker labels like “this aircraft flies on sustainable fuels” and organisers adding alternative fuel pumps for going to aircrafts – is unlikely to please all critics at the Oct 22-24 luxury jet occasion.

Environmentalists and some experts stay skeptical that biojetfuels, usually blended 50-50 with kerosene, will make a substantial effect on public perceptions about luxury travel.

“No amount of Jatropha or Brazil-nut fuel can make business jets look eco-friendly,” stated air travel expert Richard Aboulafia.

Demand from organization jet operators for sustainable fuels now far exceeds supply and their interest might drive future production, Sherbacow stated.

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

Corporate charter companies and consultants are also seeing more interest from consumers who desire to buy carbon credits to balance out emissions from their flights.

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

“At the end of the day, I believe that rate, 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)