A Virgin Atlantic Boeing 787 Dreamliner, called “Flight 100”, has become the first transatlantic commercial flight to be powered using 100% sustainable aviation fuel. The passenger flight completed its maiden journey from London, UK and landed at the JFK Airport in New York, USA.<\/p>\n
The 787 Dreamliner, powered by 100% sustainable aviation fuel, managed to cut down carbon emissions by 70%, compared to when running on conventional fuel. The flight was a demo flight carrying scientists, media, corporate officials from Virgin, government officials, engineers & company owner Richard Branson himself. The United Kingdom Civil Aviation Authority issued a special permit for the flight since current regulations prohibit using more than 50% sustainable aviation fuel.<\/p>\n
The aircraft is said to have run on 70 tonnes of fuel made mostly from waste cooking oil and animal fat. Also, the flight itself was a standard-issue Dreamliner, with no changes having been made to accommodate sustainable fuel usage.<\/p>\n
The demo run is in line with the White House’s goal set two years back, which is to produce 3 billion gallons of sustainable aviation fuel per year by 2030 and 100% of domestic commercial jet fuel by 2050.<\/p>\n