This past Friday I had the opportunity to fly Southwest Airlines, for the first time, and headed up to Boston, MA from Baltimore, MD. While waiting at Southwest gates in terminal E, I couldn’t help but take a a time-lapse of the traffic at Boston. If you have six minutes to spare, watch the whole thing, but if not, a little bit before half-way and towards the end are the best parts.
Fly.co.uk, a European website that compares over 140 well-known airlines and suppliers to find cheap flights for consumers, created this graphic with statistics primarily on the airline industry’s carbon emissions. (Click the graphic at the bottom to enlarge).
How are airlines and manufacturers doing with bio-fuels? Aircraft manufacturers, a mix of airlines and engine manufacturers have teamed up to progress forward with implementing bio-fuels into commercial flights. Virgin Atlantic, perhaps one of the more vocal airlines on the matter, tested a coconut / babassu based bio-fuel on a Boeing 747 General Electric engine in February of 2008. Other airlines, like Air New Zealand, Continental Airlines, and Japan Airlines (JAL), have flown successful test flights with Rolls-Royce, CFM, and Pratt & Whitney engines, respectively, on Boeing airplanes.
The latest news? Airlines, manufacturers, and other aspects of the aviation industry are evaluating options to determine the sustainability of biofuels for expanded and broader usage. On Monday, it was announced that Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, Portland International Airport, Spokane International Airport, Boeing, Alaska Airlines, and Washington State University will spend six-months studying how biomass sources might produce aviation fuel. According to the BusinessWeek article, Boeing has said that by 2015, it and other aircraft makers and airlines want to use biofuels for 1 percent of annual fuel consumption – about 500 million to 600 million gallons. Possible fuel sources are algae, jatropha oil, coconut, camelina, and babassu.
It will be quite some time before a fair amount of major airline flights are flown solely on bio-fuels, but this is still in the testing phase, and it will be interesting to watch as time moves forward.
Posted in Airlines
Tagged Airlines, Boeing, Carbon Emissions, Environment, Portland, Seattle, Washington State University
An experimental solar-powered aircraft completed its first 24-hour test flight last week, utilizing nothing but the sun’s rays to keep it running. The plane landed in Switzerland 9 AM local on Thursday. With a massive solar-panel wing, stretching 208 feet, and with the help of four, ten horsepower engines, the aircraft was able to break this milestone.
Could solar-powered airplanes be in the future for airliners? In the short-term, no. In the long-run? Possibly. It will be quite awhile before a solar-powered airplane, capable of handling more weight, will enter the industry. I’m sure airlines would love an airplane that can use the sun’s energy, but not if it only carries one or two people and has the wingspan of more than half of the length of a football field. I’d be curious to see how the airplane fairs in its planned Atlantic-crossing in 2013 and the effect clouds have. Replacing the jet engine is a long ways off, but this group have proved that there are renewable energy alternatives for aviation.
Associated Press video:
I hope everyone has a safe and fun fourth of July.
This past friday I had the opportunity to take a day-trip with family to Chicago, IL. The whole day was an adventure, and I’ll post the itinerary below, but the ending was remarkable. On our American Eagle flight back to Philadelphia, the sky was lit up by fireworks. Nearly every part of the see-able land area below was sparkling, and it was the perfect ending to a terrific trip.
It made me think, today is not a good day for VFR (visual flight rules) flights in small airplanes. I know for a fact that part of the Orlando area airspace is off-limits to pilots around the Disney area for safety concerns, one of them being the danger of fireworks. For all you low-flying VFR pilots, be careful out there tonight, and have safe flights.
To all readers, have a great holiday!
Itinerary for Chicago:
9:20 AM: Arrive at Chicago O’Hare via American Airlines
9:40 AM – 10:30 AM: Chicago Transit Authority Blue Line from O’Hare to Monroe (Downtown)
10:40 AM – Noon: Willis Tower (Sears Tower) SkyDeck (Fast Pass)
Noon – 1:00 PM: Lunch at Hannah’s Bretzel (180 W. Washington St)
1:00 PM – 1:30 PM: Walk around the area (visited The Boeing Co. and a few other HQs)
1:31 PM – 1:48 PM: Chicago Transit Authority Bus #124 to Navy Pier (we walked instead, about a 40 min. walk)
2:30 PM – 3:45 PM: SeaDogs Architectural Speedboat tour of Chicago
3:45 PM – 4:15 PM: Hung out around Navy Pier
4:15 PM – 5:00 PM: Checking out The Magnificent Mile
5:00 PM – 6:30 PM: Dinner at Osteria Via Stato
7:00 PM – 7:45 PM: Chicago Transit Authority Blue Line at Clark / Lake to O’Hare
9:35 PM: American Eagle flight back to Philadelphia
