CHICAGO, United States (CCTV) — After flying over 11,000 kilometers, Hainan Airlines Flight 497, which took off from Beijing, landed at Chicago O’Hare International Airport on Tuesday local time.
The Boeing 787 Dreamliner of Hainan Airlines flew with biological aviation fuel that is produced from waste cooking oil, signaling the first Sino-U.S. green route demonstration to use aviation biofuel.
The use of biofuel can reduce carbon emissions while ensuring flight safety and efficiency, according to Hainan Airlines.
Sun Jianfeng, President of Hainan Airlines Co.and the 787 Captain said the use of biofuel is as safe as ordinary aviation fuels.
“The flight was very stable and successful. After flying to a maximum height of 41,000 inches, we still found the engine was running well and the fuel was in good condition. Which was the goal of the test flight,” said Sun.
Darrin Morgan, director of Sustainable Fuels Strategy at Boeing said that the flight by Hainan Airlines is a significant milestone.
“The sustainable air fuels made today are advanced in nature. They are not only sustainable from an environmental perspective, they are better from a technical perspective and that is a big deal. It is now a reality. It is not just an aspiration. It is now a commercial reality,” said Darrin.
With further cost improvements, the use of aviation biofuel on a mass scale could be set to lift off.
“The technology not only has environmental value, but also directly reduces the amount of waste from cooking oils and lowers the risks of old cooking oil returning to the dinner tables,” said Lye Dapeng, spokesman with Sinopec Group.
Hainan Airlines made the country’s first domestic biofuel-powered passenger flight in 2015.