AMSTERDAM, March 18 (Reuters) - Dutch airline operator KLM, part of Franco-Dutch Air France-KLM said on Thursday it wanted to make commercial flights which use biofuel from 2011.
Last November, during a 1.5 hour KLM flight above the Netherlands, one engine of a Boeing 747 ran on a mixture of 50 percent sustainable biofuel and 50 percent on traditional kerosene. The other three engines ran on 100 percent normal kerosene.
'We have proven it is possible,' said a KLM spokeswoman.
The exact date for launching commercial flights which use biofuels would depend on developments in the industry, such as suppliers and certification, the spokeswoman said.
She did not know to what degree commercial flights would use biofuels but said that test flights had taken place where all four engines used 100 percent biofuels.
KLM Chief Executive Peter Hartman said in November the biofuel used on the flight reduced CO2 emissions by up to 80 percent compared to conventional kerosene.
Aircraft account for an estimated 2-4 percent of global carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, which scientists say could cause global temperatures to rise, triggering widespread disease, famine, flooding and drought.
Experts say global aviation emissions could reach 2.4 billion tonnes in 2050, which would be 15-20 percent of all CO2 permitted under a global agreement and a nearly four-fold increase on current levels.
(Reporting by Gilbert Kreijger; editing by James Jukwey) Keywords: BIOFUELS/KLM (gilbert.kreijger@thomsonreuters.com; +31 20 5045007; Reuters Messaging: gilbert.kreijger.reuters.com@reuters.net) COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2010. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters.
Last November, during a 1.5 hour KLM flight above the Netherlands, one engine of a Boeing 747 ran on a mixture of 50 percent sustainable biofuel and 50 percent on traditional kerosene. The other three engines ran on 100 percent normal kerosene.
'We have proven it is possible,' said a KLM spokeswoman.
The exact date for launching commercial flights which use biofuels would depend on developments in the industry, such as suppliers and certification, the spokeswoman said.
She did not know to what degree commercial flights would use biofuels but said that test flights had taken place where all four engines used 100 percent biofuels.
KLM Chief Executive Peter Hartman said in November the biofuel used on the flight reduced CO2 emissions by up to 80 percent compared to conventional kerosene.
Aircraft account for an estimated 2-4 percent of global carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, which scientists say could cause global temperatures to rise, triggering widespread disease, famine, flooding and drought.
Experts say global aviation emissions could reach 2.4 billion tonnes in 2050, which would be 15-20 percent of all CO2 permitted under a global agreement and a nearly four-fold increase on current levels.
(Reporting by Gilbert Kreijger; editing by James Jukwey) Keywords: BIOFUELS/KLM (gilbert.kreijger@thomsonreuters.com; +31 20 5045007; Reuters Messaging: gilbert.kreijger.reuters.com@reuters.net) COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2010. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters.
