 Nov. 17, 2008 - A recent United Airlines flight from Sydney to San Francisco saved an estimated 1,500 gallons of fuel and 32,000 pounds of climate emissions thanks to a suite of state-of-the-art energy-efficiency measures, the carrier reports.
The flight was undertaken as part of the Asia and South Pacific Initiative to Reduce Emissions (ASPIRE), which aims to help the global aviation industry share best practices for better environmental performance. United is the first U.S. carrier to participate in the program, a partnership between the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), Airservices Australia, and Airways New Zealand.
United says it reduced fuel burn and greenhouse gas emissions from "gate to gate" by leveraging ASPIRE’s preferred flight pattern, which involves:
- optimizing departures to minimize aircraft run time before takeoff
- following trajectory optimization during flights which means planes are given the most direct, fuel-efficient, high-altitude routing, taking wind and weather into consideration during cruising
- employing a set of arrival procedures, known as tailored arrivals, to save fuel upon landing
Developed by UA and Boeing, the tailored arrivals procedure follows a smooth, continuous descent rather than the traditional step-down approach. "Normally, busy traffic patterns around and into an airport require flights to take a 'step down' approach, moving slowly from altitude to altitude on descent," explains Robert A. Sturgell, FAA acting administrator. "To make an analogy, ASPIRE carves an HOV lane that lets controllers give the pilot one smooth, steady continuous approach."
United says it plans to expand the program this year, with a substantial increase in the number of flights conducting tailored arrivals. Each tailored-arrivals flight saves about 60 gallons of fuel and a ton of carbon dioxide, according to United.
"ASPIRE United has demonstrated the tremendous environmental and fuel savings potential if our nation invests in next-generation technology and in updating our air traffic control system," says Pete McDonald, the carrier's chief administrative officer.
Last year the FAA joined ASPIRE’s sister organization in Europe, the Atlantic Initiative to Reduce Emissions. |
