Recession Not Slowing Aviation Biofuel Plans at Boeing & Airbus

photo: Sven via flickr

The recession may be slowing down some renewable energy projects, but Boeing and Airbus have indicated that they will be continuing to push forward on developing planes that can run on biofuels, and working with biofuel producers develop these fuels, Business Week reports:Since the commercial aircraft lifetimes can be 30-35 years, airplane manufacturers are less concerned about shorter term economic downturns and won't be making changes to their product strategy or research efforts in making a transition to biofuels, the vice president for sustainable development at Airbus said.

Commercial Usage Still 5-10 Years AwaySo when will we be able to travel on biofuel-powered planes? Boeing reiterated previous statements, saying that it expects that biofuels will be certified for regular use on aircraft within 3-5 years and that most airlines would be using at least some percentage of biofuels by 2015. Airbus on the other made more cautious statements, saying that it wouldn't be until 2025 until biofuels made up even 25% of the fuel used by airlines. A big variable in that being how much biofuel can be made by producers.

In test flights earlier this year by Continental Airlines and Japan Airlines, biofuels were found to be more efficient than fossil fuels.

via: Business WeekAviation BiofuelAviation Biofuels Could Be Commercially Used Within 3 Years: Boeing Japan Airlines Finds Biofuel More Efficient Than Petro-Fuel in Test FlightAir New Zealand Sets Sustainable Biofuels Goal for 2013Algae, jatropha Tapped to Power Continental Airlines' First Biofuel Test Flight