HOUSTON, Jan 07, 2009 /PRNewswire-FirstCall via COMTEX News Network/ — Continental Airlines (NYSE: CAL) today is demonstrating the use of sustainable biofuel to power a commercial aircraft for the first time ever in North America. The demonstration flight — which is being conducted in partnership with Boeing, GE Aviation/CFM International, and Honeywell’s UOP — marks the first sustainable biofuel demonstration flight by a commercial carrier using a two-engine aircraft, a Boeing 737-800 equipped with CFM International CFM56-7B engines.
“This demonstration flight represents another step in Continental’s ongoing commitment to fuel efficiency and environmental responsibility,” said Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Larry Kellner. “The technical knowledge we gain today will contribute to a wider understanding of the future for transportation fuels.”
The biofuel blend includes components derived from algae and jatropha plants, both sustainable, second-generation sources that do not impact food crops or water resources or contribute to deforestation. The algae oil has been provided by Sapphire Energy, and the jatropha oil by Terasol Energy. This is the first time a commercial carrier will power a flight using fuel derived in part from algae.
Continental’s Boeing 737-800, tail number 516, will depart from and return to Houston’s Bush Intercontinental Airport operating under a specially-issued “Experimental” aircraft type certificate, and will carry no passengers.
During the flight, which will last approximately two hours, Continental test pilots will engage the aircraft in a number of normal and non-normal flight maneuvers, such as mid-flight engine shutdown and re-start, and power accelerations and decelerations. A Continental engineer will record flight data onboard.
The flight will operate with a biofuel blend, which consists of 50 percent biologically-derived fuel and 50 percent traditional jet fuel, in the No. 2 engine. This biofuel blend will result in a significant net decrease in carbon emissions relative to traditional jet fuel, as both jatropha and algae consume carbon during their lifecycles.
The aircraft’s No. 1 engine will operate on 100 percent traditional jet fuel, allowing Continental to compare performance between the biofuel blend and traditional fuel. As Continental has worked with Boeing, GE Aviation/CFM and UOP for more than nine months to carefully evaluate and test the biofuel in engines on the ground, no difference in performance is expected.
