June 15, 2010

Dutch fly world’s first biofuelled helicopter

Filed under: Aviation,Dutch first,Sustainability by Orangemaster @ 10:44 am
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On Wednesday 16 June, the Dutch defense department will be showing off the very first helicopter that flies on biofuel. A Boeing Apache AH-64D helicopter of the Royal Netherlands Air Force will fly on biofuel above the military Gilze-Rijen Air Base, located in Noord-Brabant, between the cities of Tilburg and Breda.

During the demonstration flight, one of the Apache’s engines will run on a mixture of fossile fuel and biokerosene, of which 90% of this kerosene comes from discarded cooking oil and 10% algenol, biofuel made from algae that is still very new.

This is a picture of an Apache, most probably somewhere in the United States.

(Link: blikopnieuws, Photo of AH-64 Apache helicopter by nathanm, some rights reserved)

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January 16, 2008

Schiphol airport final destination for ‘green’ airplane

Filed under: Aviation,Sustainability by Orangemaster @ 11:13 am
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British airline Virgin Atlantic has recently started testing biofuel on a 747 flight to Amsterdam. The flight from Heathrow to Schiphol is part of an initiative to apply profitable, alternative biofuel in commercial aviation. The flights are done in collaboration with Boeing and motor manufacturer GE Aviation.

Virgin Atlantic claims that it is the first time a commercial aircraft flies on algae-based biofuel, a fuel that does not pose a threat to the food market or fresh water reserves. The goal of the test is to reduce the CO2 emissions level of the aviation sector. The plane flew without passengers.

The reason I am on about this is because while on the motorway last Sunday, a Virgin Atlantic 747 flew overhead, which it apparently never does. Now I know why it did.

(Link: luchtvaartnieuws.nl)

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