Historic flight planned as German carrier calls halt to domestic trial that has saved 1,471 tonnes of CO2 since July

By Will Nichols,

Lufthansa looks set to conclude its biofuel trial with its first biofuel-powered transatlantic flight, after the airline admitted that the future of its biofuel programme now rested on its ability to source sufficient sustainable jet biofuels.

A Boeing 747-400 will leave Frankfurt bound for Washington DC carrying around 40 tonnes of a biosynthetic fuel mix, which the company estimates will reduce CO2 emissions by 38 tonnes – roughly equivalent to six scheduled flights between Frankfurt and Berlin.

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The flight looks to be the final act in a trial that has seen Lufthansa complete 1,187  domestic flights between Frankfurt and Hamburgusing a 50/50 blend of regular fuel and biosynthetic kerosene in one of the plane’s engines.

From mid-July to the end of December, it used up 1,566 tonnes of biokerosene mix, saving an estimated 1,471 tonnes of CO2 in the process.

Lufthansa hailed the trial as a success and said the higher energy density of biofuels meant it reduced fuel consumption by more than one per cent during the flights, while the fuel also proved to be free of polluting sulphur and aromatic compounds.

“Our burnFAIR project went off smoothly and to our fullest satisfaction,” said Joachim Buse, vice president of aviation biofuel at Lufthansa. “As expected, biofuel proved its worth in daily flight operations.”

However, while the company said biofuels would play a major role in helping airlines meet an industry-wide goal of halving 2005 levels of emissions by 2050, Buse confirmed its use of alternative fuels on commercial flights will be suspended until more sustainable fuels can be identified.

“As a next step, we will focus on the suitability, availability, sustainability and certification of raw materials,” he said. “However, Lufthansa will only continue the practical trial if we are able to secure the volume of sustainable, certified raw materials required in order to maintain routine operations.”

Airlines are coming under increased pressure to cut emissions as a result of volatile oil prices and their inclusion in the EU’s emissions trading scheme.

However, green campaigners are concerned increasing demand for biofuels will lead to energy crops being grown on land that should be used for producing food.

The industry has countered by arguing that biofuels will only supplement standard fuels rather than replace them, while many carriers have invested in so-called next generation biofuels that should not impinge on food production.

For example, BA has stated its intention to start using a fuel derived from waste from 2015 – and has invested in a plant in east London to produce it – while Virgin Atlantic is investigating a fuel made from waste gases that could be running part of its fleet by 2014.

(Source: www.businessgreen.com )