Branson plans cuts to plane emissions.


British tycoon Sir Richard Branson has urged airlines and airport operators to join his Virgin Atlantic carrier in an ambitious plan to curb the aviation industry's contribution to global warming.
The billionaire founder of the Virgin Group of companies says that airlines around the world have to play their part in reducing carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions given out by commercial planes by up to 25 per cent.
"We need to accelerate the pace at which we reduce aviation's impact on the environment," Sir Richard said in a letter to industry leaders, including the bosses of British Airways, American Airlines and low-cost flyer Easyjet.
"We can not ignore that aviation does create environmental problems, around 2 per cent of global CO2 emissions, although equally it produces significant economic and social benefits."
The plan envisages the creation of "starting grids" for all aircraft departures - a holding area close to the runway that consists of several parking bays for aircraft.
Virgin Atlantic says planes could be towed closer to the runway before take-off, substantially reducing the time that their engines need to be running.
Arriving planes could also turn off their engines after five minutes and be towed to their stand, saving "considerable extra CO2".
The airline says the grids would reduce fuel consumption and on-the-ground CO2 emissions by over 50 per cent before take-off at London's Heathrow Airport for Virgin Atlantic planes.
It would reduce the emissions by nearly 90 per cent for Virgin flights at JFK Airport in New York.
"It would also mean that an aircraft flying from JFK to Heathrow could carry around two tonnes less weight in the air, which would mean that the amount of fuel burnt would be considerably less, reducing CO2 emissions even further."
Light-weight fittings
Sir Richard's letter has been addressed also to engine and aircraft manufacturers such as Rolls Royce and Boeing, and airport operators including BAA in Britain.
It comes after the flamboyant entrepreneur last week vowed to spend $US3 billion in the next decade on projects to combat global warming and reduce dependence on fossil fuels.
To cut fuel consumption, Virgin Atlantic even plans to reduce the weight of its aircraft through using lighter paint on the exterior and lighter fittings inside the cabin.
That includes changing oxygen bottles from metal to carbon-fibre, and removing empty champagne and beer bottles which have been drunk before the plane leaves the stand for recycling.
Sir Richard says that combined with an earlier and smoother descent by pilots coming into land, the changes would save over 150 million tonnes of CO2 emissions a year, or 25 per cent of the world's aviation emissions.
"With global warming, the world is heading for a catastrophe," he said.
"The aviation industry must play its part in averting that."
- AFP
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