Tue November 8, 2011 Biofuels Start To Take Off In The Airline
Industry This week, two U.S. airlines will be flying passengers
on flights powered by biofuels for the first time. On Monday a
Continental flight from Houston to Chicago used a biofuel blend
made in part from algae, and Wednesday Alaska Airlines is set to
fly passengers using a fuel made in part from cooking oil. If
all goes well, more airlines may start to use alternative jet
fuels. But the shift is not without its challenges. Alaska Air
Group has focused on fuel efficiency in recent years to keep
costs down and help the environment. Alaska Air Director of
Government Relations Megan Lawrence lists innovations like fog-
busting satellite technology used to land in hard-to-reach
locations and make flight paths more efficient. "So the next
kind of big thing on the horizon, because efficiency can only
get us so far in terms of reducing our carbon footprint, is the
biofuels arena," Lawrence says. She says the biofuel the airline
will be using will prov