Please give a brief backgrounder of your biofuel project and your success in driving the initiative. When do you plan to introduce the same in commercial flights?
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| Stephen King |
In October 2011 we were delighted to announce a world-first, low-carbon aviation fuel, to be delivered in partnership with exciting new fuels company, LanzaTech. Richard Branson described the process of converting steel waste gases to produce a fuel with roughly half the total lifecycle carbon content of kerosene, as ‘one of the most exciting developments of our lifetime and a major breakthrough in the war on carbon’. The new fuel will be sustainable environmentally (it has lower lifecycle carbon emissions and won’t cause deforestation), socially (it won’t compete with staple food crops) and economically (crucially it will be available in viable quantities and at a comparable price to conventional jet fuel). We’re working hard to see the technology through to commercial use in our aircraft. We hope to have a demo flight using the new fuel this year, working with partners on the technical fuel approval (ASTM) process, as well as collaborating with the Roundtable on Sustainable Biofuels (RSB) on sustainability certification. We plan to uplift fuel in commercial quantities by 2014.
What is the significance of sustainability in the vision philosophy of your airline?
We’re known as a company that cares about what we do and how we do it. Sustainability helps us direct that business ethos when making decisions and finding creative solutions to our environmental challenges while looking after our customers, staff and communities and operating a successful business. We’re known for our innovation, and our adventurous spirit means we’re not afraid to push boundaries in following our sustainability vision. We know that sustainability can sometimes offer us a genuine triple win – for example, achieving fuel, energy and carbon reductions, and reducing our use of materials, can save us money, but it also makes sound business sense and is simply the right thing to do. Virgin Atlantic’s vision is to be a leading airline on sustainability, driving solutions for the whole industry, and its work on sustainable fuels, part of our ‘Change is in the Air’ sustainability programme, is certainly pushing boundaries. We are delighted to have won the 2013 Sustainable Biofuels Award in the Sustainable Aviation sector. The award win follows our ground-breaking work towards the development of a world-first low carbon aviation fuel that is set to achieve 50-60 per cent carbon reductions compared to the standard fossil fuel alternative.
Any new developments as far as the India market is concerned?
We are launching domestic within the UK to Manchester, Edinburgh and Aberdeen from April 2013 onwards. ‘Little Red’ is the name of the new operation. The 26 domestic flights a day will strengthen connectivity to our existing long haul network flights. The new schedule has been tailor-made to suit Indian passengers travelling from Delhi and Mumbai as they can now connect seamlessly to our UK destinations on their preferred airline.
What about connectivity to North America?
We recently announced a strategic alliance with Delta Airlines that will create an expanded trans-Atlantic network and enhance competition between the UK and North America, offering greater benefits for customers travelling on those routes. The joint venture announced with Delta and the new domestic Little Red services are positive steps that will increase the current offering available to our Indian customers.
