Delta Air Lines has agreed to purchase 25 additional Airbus A321neos, with options for 25 more, as carriers resume planning for long-term growth and the severity of the COVID-19 pandemic ebbs across the U.S.
A four-year research project to develop a cheaper method of producing sustainable aviation fuel from agricultural and forestry residues has kicked off in Europe.
Zero-emissions propulsion startup Universal Hydrogen has raised $20.5 million in Series A funding from investors including the venture arms of Airbus, JetBlue Airways and Toyota.
Southwest Airlines has committed to continue supporting the U.S. National Renewable Energy Laboratory’s development of sustainable aviation fuel produced from food waste.
Bye Aerospace has launched development of the eFlyer 800, an eight-seat, all-electric competitor to Textron Aviation’s Beechcraft King Air 260 turboprop.
The airline group said it would achieve this by purchasing one million tons of sustainable jet fuel per year, which will allow it to cut its annual emissions by two million tons by 2030.
More than 25% of CO2 emissions from flights in Europe could be eliminated by 2030, but improvements in air traffic management will be required, says a “think paper” released by Eurocontrol.
Airbus is moving ahead with the relaunch of its aerostructures business by proposing to reintegrate some of it into the core Airbus structure while carving out a detailed parts company that it could put up for sale later.
Europe is looking to business aviation to take the lead in adopting sustainable aviation fuels because of its greater willingness compared with the airlines to pay a premium for low-carbon fuel, at least until production is scaled up and prices come down.
An alliance has been launched with the goal of accelerating investment in sustainable aviation fuels by creating a certificate system that provides a standardized approach to verifying and tracking the emissions reductions from the low-carbon fuels.
While Boeing, the FAA, and affected operators continue to collaborate on fixes for 737 MAXs that are out of service awaiting electrical-system modifications, executives at the manufacturer and one affected customer are confident the disruption will not drag on.
The airline industry is keeping and, in some instances, raising its commitments to the environment through technologies, sustainable aviation fuels and improved operations and infrastructure.
Swiss startup H55, a spinoff from the Solar Impulse round-the-world aircraft project, has joined MagniX and Harbour Air to certify an electric-powered version of the de Havilland Canada DHC-2 Beaver.
Spirit AeroSystems is now making several changes it had wanted to make eventually in a much quicker fashion—potentially turning its labor-intensive, 20th-century style factories into modern marvels of digitally driven lean manufacturing efficiency.
Europe has launched a research program to develop a deeper understanding of the environmental impact of future supersonic aircraft and provide input into international efforts to develop certification standards for noise and emissions.
The former finance chief at Boeing Commercial Services has teamed with a well-known private equity firm in aerospace and defense to launch Aquila Air Capital, a new commercial aircraft, engine and equipment lessor, to capitalize on the historic disruption in commercial aviation.
The FAA is expanding a cargo-compartment inspection mandate to all Boeing 787s after determining the affected parts—decompression panels—may be found throughout the widebody twin fleet and not just on a limited number of aircraft.
