British low-cost airline easyJet recently revealed its plans to design a fleet of environmentally friendly short-haul jets that will be ready to fly by 2015. The “easyJet ecoJet” will emit 75% less nitrous oxide and 50% less carbon dioxide than today’s short-haul jets (like the Boeing 737 and Airbus A320), and for those who just want a little shut-eye while you fly, you can rest assured—the ecoJet will be 25% quieter, too.
As air travel demand soars, scientists fear engine emissions will have an increasingly negative effect on the environment. In 2004, NASA discovered a one percent per decade increase in cirrus clouds over the U.S. might be to blame for the half a degree Fahrenheit per decade warming trend between 1975 and 1994. This cloud cover includes jets’ condensation trails, or contrails, which are often indistinguishable from cirrus clouds. If successful, ecoJet planes will emit less carbon dioxide than EU trains (by 23%) and cars (by about half).
While the ecoJet’s lightweight framework will mean a 3-10 minute increase in flight time, easyJet hopes the aircraft’s new design will allow it to be more efficient on the ground, which, combined with air traffic control improvements, should make up for the lost time in the air.
No word yet on how much tickets will cost, but IT is already planning its 2015 vacation to Europe. In the meantime, we're eager to try Boeing's 787 Dreamliner—available for passenger service in May 2008—which they're saying will use 20 percent less fuel per passenger, produce fewer carbon emissions and have quieter takeoffs and landings.
Who's building the these new planes?
Posted by: Travel Guy | January 06, 2008 at 06:46 PM