Greener skies testing begun by Alaska Airlines

The first step in a project to cut drastically the emissions because of air travel was started by Alaska Airlines 737. By using a satellite guidance technology called Required Navigation Performance, the plane took a continuous descent approach which reduces the flight-path length, saving fuel and emissions and cutting down on the noise for the communities around the airport. This technology was developed in Alaska in the 1990s to help its planes to land at remote and geographically difficult airports in the state of Alaska. All the planes of Alaska are equipped with this technology. The international aviation industry announced the goal of achieving “carbon neutral growth” by 2020. This is primarily through increasing fuel efficiency and expanding the use of low carbon biofuels for air travel.
[Reuters]