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 luxury jets are luring buyers with their sleek silhouettes, plush cabins - and significantly, their usage of alternative fuels.

Fuel producers and jetmakers are eager to display novel forms of fuel considered less damaging to the climate, from utilized cooking oil to the definitely less glamorous meat waste.

Business jet operators, like airline companies, have actually bowed to environmental pressure on air travel and dedicated to cutting in half carbon emissions by 2050 compared to 2005.

Their hope is that adopting renewable fuel to suppress emissions could make business jets more appealing to environmentally conscious purchasers - particularly corporations dealing with concerns over sustainability from investors or green campaign groups.

The accessibility of less polluting personal jets could also spare the rich and well-known the unfavorable publicity experienced by Britain's Prince Harry and his better half Meghan over a current personal jet trip to southern France.

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

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

"All of our product is inedible."

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

FLIGHT SHAMING

Private jets represent less than 0.1% of total annual carbon emissions internationally, but can release, typically, approximately 20 times more carbon emissions per passenger mile than jetliners, according to the London-based personal charter firm Victor.

Prince Harry has actually protected his occasional use of personal jets to ensure his household's safety, and has stated that on the uncommon celebrations he does not fly commercially he offsets his emissions.

But planemakers state events such as the furore over his itinerary have added fresh difficulties for a market currently making every effort to justify its contribution to cutting business costs.

"Incidents of flight shaming including using personal jets are unfortunate when you consider that our industry has actually provided fuel efficiency improvements of 40% over the previous 40 years," said Bombardier Aviation President David Coleal.

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

But even an image makeover - with jets sporting sticker labels like "this airplane flies on renewable fuels" and organisers including alternative fuel pumps for visiting aircrafts - is unlikely to satisfy all critics at the Oct 22-24 high-end jet event.

Environmentalists and some analysts stay hesitant that biojetfuels, usually combined 50-50 with kerosene, will make a considerable influence on public understandings about luxury travel.

"No quantity of jatropha curcas or Brazil-nut fuel can make organization jets look eco-friendly," stated aviation analyst Richard Aboulafia.

Demand from business jet operators for eco-friendly fuels now far goes beyond supply and their interest could drive future production, Sherbacow said.

World Energy, which produces 40 million gallons of biofuel at its California plant, might expand production up to 150 million gallons by 2022.

Corporate charter companies and experts are likewise seeing more interest from consumers who wish to purchase carbon credits to offset emissions from their flights.

Brian Proctor, CEO of Mente Group, a U.S. consultancy, said emissions played a role in a corporate jet utilization study his company just recently completed for a Fortune 500 company.

"At the end of the day, I believe that cost, expense per hour, variety, speed and efficiency, that's still the (sales) driver. But I believe 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)