Loading ...The first biokerosene-powered passenger flight of KLM Royal Dutch Airlines had flown on Monday. The KLM flight, with 40 people on board, took off and landed at Schiphol airport near Amsterdam. The flight was the first of its kind in Europe.
The Boeing 747 flight, which circled the Netherlands for one hour and 30 minutes, flew with one of its engines running with 50 per cent sustainable biofuel and the other half with traditional kerosene. The remaining three engines ran on normal kerosene.
KLM spokeswoman, Monique Matze, said that the biofuel used on the flight is made from a camelina plant and manufactured by a company based in the US. Chief of KLM, Peter Hartman, informed that the flight, running with the use of biofuel, reduced the carbon dioxide emission of the plane by 80 per cent in comparison to using regular kerosene.
Aircrafts are producing an estimated four per cent of the total global carbon emissions. Experts say that there will be a significant increase in emissions that could reach up to 2.4 billion tonnes by 2050. The increase in carbon dioxide emissions is 15 to 20 per cent over than the permitted amount. In addition, the forecasted 2050 emission level is roughly a four-fold increase from the current rate.
The SkyEnergy consortium, founded by KLM, North Sea Petroleum and Spring Associates, targets to supply the growing demand of biofuel for planes. KLM said that its pursuance for sustainable biokerosene aircrafts does not jeopardise the forests, and the food and water supplies.