1 Clean Getaway: Meat Waste Joins Biofuels At Luxury Jet Show

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By Allison Lampert

LAS VEGAS, Oct 22 (Reuters) - At the world's biggest market program in Las Vegas high-end jets are enticing purchasers with their smooth silhouettes, luxurious cabins - and significantly, their use of alternative fuels.

Fuel producers and jetmakers are eager to showcase unique forms of aviation fuel considered less harmful to the environment, from utilized cooking oil to the definitely less glamorous meat waste.

Business jet operators, like airlines, have acquiesced ecological pressure on aviation and devoted to halving carbon emissions by 2050 compared with 2005.

Their hope is that embracing sustainable fuel to suppress emissions might make business jets more appealing to ecologically mindful purchasers - particularly corporations dealing with questions over sustainability from shareholders or green campaign groups.

The accessibility of less polluting personal jets could also spare the rich and well-known the negative publicity experienced by Britain's Prince Harry and his wife Meghan over a recent private jet journey to southern France.

Five Gulfstream jets on screen in Las Vegas are utilizing California-produced fuel from inedible beef tallow.

The most current waste-based fuels include "fats, grease and oils that are byproducts of the food industry," stated Bryan Sherbacow, chief industrial officer of Boston-based biofuel manufacturer World Energy, which produces fuel from meat waste used by Gulfstream.

"All of our item is inedible."

A few of the other 79 aircraft on screen are expected to be powered by 150,000 gallons of other eco-friendly fuel mixes anticipated to be pumped at the program.

FLIGHT SHAMING

Private jets account for less than 0.1% of overall yearly carbon emissions internationally, but can emit, typically, as much as 20 times more carbon emissions per guest mile than jetliners, according to the London-based personal charter firm Victor.

has actually defended his occasional use of personal jets to ensure his family's safety, and has actually stated that on the unusual occasions he does not fly commercially he offsets his emissions.

But planemakers state incidents such as the furore over his itinerary have actually added fresh challenges for a market already aiming to justify its contribution to cutting business costs.

"Incidents of flight shaming including using private jets are regrettable when you consider that our market has actually provided fuel performance improvements of 40% over the past 40 years," said Bombardier Aviation President David Coleal.

Bombardier thinks increased sustainable fuel usage will assist the market make inroads with corporations and rich buyers. According to market information, billionaires just have a 19% service jet ownership rate.

But even an image makeover - with jets sporting sticker labels like "this aircraft flies on sustainable fuels" and organisers including alternative fuel pumps for visiting aircrafts - is not likely to please all critics at the Oct 22-24 luxury jet occasion.

Environmentalists and some experts remain skeptical that biojetfuels, usually blended 50-50 with kerosene, will make a substantial effect on public perceptions about high-end travel.

"No quantity of Jatropha or Brazil-nut fuel can make organization jets look eco-friendly," said air travel analyst Richard Aboulafia.

Demand from organization jet operators for renewable fuels now far exceeds supply and their interest could drive future production, Sherbacow stated.

World Energy, which produces 40 million gallons of biofuel at its California plant, could broaden production as much as 150 million gallons by 2022.

Corporate charter business and experts are also seeing more interest from consumers who desire to purchase carbon credits to balance out emissions from their flights.

Brian Proctor, CEO of Mente Group, a U.S. consultancy, stated emissions contributed in a corporate jet utilization research study his business just recently completed for a Fortune 500 company.

"At the end of the day, I think that price, cost per hour, variety, speed and performance, that's still the (sales) motorist. But I think individuals are ending up being more familiar with the sustainability of operations and how it affects the world." (Reporting By Allison Lampert, Editing by Tim Hepher and Alexandra Hudson)