Will Use All Routing, Efficiency Advantages Available
On December 15, Emirates will trial a new environmental
program to execute the longest green journey. The program, to be
analyzed and reviewed on the airline's inaugural flight from Dubai
to San Francisco, will represent the world's first cross-polar
green flight.
Emirates worked closely with government agencies in Dubai,
Russia, Iceland, Canada and the United States and other countries
to plot what it calls the "Emvironment" flight, the most
environmentally-sophisticated route and trip possible to help save
an estimated range of approximately 2,000 gallons of fuel and
30,000 pounds of carbon emissions on the 16-hour direct
service.
The inaugural green flight will demonstrate multiple fuel and
emission-saving measures, including priority taxi and departure
clearances; a pre-planned priority departure route out of Dubai,
providing an unimpeded climb through to cruise altitude; direct
routing over Russian and Canadian airspace, with "flexible" routing
available over the latter; and a continuous descent to landing at
SFO, if able.
Emirates will even "specially" wash the Boeing 777-200LR to
minimize drag, and the airliner will use electrical power on the
ground in Dubai rather than running its auxiliary power unit. The
airliner will taxi on one engine after landing, and all onboard
newspapers, cups and aluminum cans will be collected for
recycling.
"After months of planning, Emirates' Emvironment flight is a
best-practice trial of how airlines, governments, manufacturers,
technology providers and airports can work together to be as
eco-efficient as possible," said Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al-Maktoum,
Chairman and Chief Executive of Emirates Airline and Group. "The
San Francisco inaugural flight will be a dual milestone of
commencing services between two great cities and also demonstrating
the best our industry can offer in environmental efficiency. We
have made a multi-billion-dollar investment in new state-of-the-art
eco-efficient aircraft, and the flight will help us to further
improve our environmental performance."
The Emvironment flight will cross near the North Pole following
a long-term program of tests and negotiations involving various
governments and manufacturers. Emirates aided in the process by
operating three flights over the Polar region to evaluate the route
and operating conditions and ultimately facilitate use of the Polar
Route airspace corridor.