MONTREAL, July 24, 2012 /CNW Telbec/ - With the departure this morning
of Air Canada's flight AC864 Montreal-London, the airline will operate
its second biofuel-powered flight which is expected to generate up to
10 per cent fewer emissions by using jet fuel derived from recycled
cooking oil and through other fuel-saving measures. As the Official
Airline of the Canadian Olympic and Paralympic teams, Air Canada will
have on board today's flight a number of Olympic athletes and officials
on their way to the London 2012 Olympic Games.
"As the Official Airline of the Canadian Olympic and Paralympic Teams,
Air Canada is proud to be flying Canadian athletes to London. Just as
our athletes strive for excellence in their athletic performance, Air
Canada strives for excellence in its environmental performance," said
Dave Legge, Senior Vice President - Operations at Air Canada. "Today we
will be flying some of Canada's best athletes, in the best
environmental way - using biofuel to reduce our carbon footprint."
Twenty per cent of the fuel required by the Airbus A330 used to operate
this flight will be a 50/50 mix of regular jet fuel and biofuelderived from recycled cooking oil. This blend produced by SkyNRG has
been recertified to normal jet fuel standards and can be safely used
without modifying the aircraft's systems.
"Airbus is proud to be part of the world's first transatlantic bio fuel
flight using an A330. Like the sports stars on board, we too have
goals. More than 90 per cent of Airbus Research and Technology is
directed at setting new records in environmental performance, including
speeding up sustainable alternative fuel production and keeping the
world connected," said Andrea Debbané, Airbus Vice President
Environmental Affairs.
The Airbus A330 will be powered by Rolls-Royce Trent 700s, which are the
cleanest, quietest and most efficient engines available for the Airbus
A330. Rolls-Royce spends nearly $1.58 billion a year on research and
development, in the relentless pursuit of innovative technology and
product optimization. The Trent 700 benefits from this significant
investment through continuous improvements in the engine's efficiency
and further reduction of its impact on the environment.
Air Canada's first biofuel flight was on June 18, 2012 between Toronto
and Mexico City as part of a series of commercial biofuel flights that
took the secretary general of ICAO to the United Nations conference on
Sustainable Development held in Rio de Janeiro.
Air Canada also uses other techniques and measures on its flights to
reduce impact on the environment. These include:
Pre-flight maintenance preparation:
-
Fuselage wash and wax to improve aerodynamics
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Engine compressor wash to increase efficiency
Pre-flight operations:
-
Minimizing emissions from on-board Auxiliary Power Unit (APU) through
use of ground power at gate and use of conditioned air
-
Taxiing the aircraft to the runway with one engine
-
Minimizing taxi time to runway
Take-off:
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Reduced thrust take-off
-
Air conditioning adjusted to save power
Climb:
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Immediate turn towards destination
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Optimized climb to optimal cruise altitude
Cruise:
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In conjunction with NavCanada ENGAGE programme, optimized cruise speed
and altitude
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Most direct flight routing
Descent:
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Constant descent using optimized descent rate along most direct routing
Arrival:
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Direct taxi to gate with minimal delay
-
Taxiing the aircraft with one engine
-
Minimizing use of APU at gate through use of ground power.
Air Canada is Canada's largest domestic and international airline
serving more than 175 destinations on five continents. Canada's flag
carrier is the 15th largest commercial airline in the world and in 2011
served more than 33 million customers. Air Canada provides scheduled
passenger service directly to 59 Canadian cities, 56 destinations in
the United States and 63 cities in Europe, the Middle East, Asia,
Australia, the Caribbean, Mexico and South America. Air Canada is a
founding member of Star Alliance, the world's most comprehensive air
transportation network serving 1,290 destinations in 189 countries. In
2012, Air Canada was ranked Best International Airline in North America
in a worldwide survey of more than 18 million airline passengers
conducted by independent research firm Skytrax, third consecutive year
the airline is named a winner at Skytrax World Airline Awards.
Air Canada customers can collect Aeroplan miles for future rewards
through Canada's leading loyalty program, and Top Tier members enjoy
reciprocal frequent flyer benefits including lounge and priority
services. For more information visit aircanada.com, follow @AirCanada on Twitter and join Air Canada on Facebook.
SOURCE: AIR CANADA