Brazil’s TAM Airlines and Airbus have conducted a Jatropha based biofuel test flight using one of the airline’s CFM56 powered Airbus A320s.
The 45 minute flight from Rio de Janiero’s Galeao Antonio Carlos Jobim airport used a 50:50 Jatropha based biofuel and regular jet fuel blend processed by Honeywell subsidiary UOP. Twenty TAM staff and Airbus personnel were onboard the trial flight.
Airbus says studies show Jatropha has the potential to reduce the aviation industry’s carbon footprint by up to 80 per cent compared to conventional aviation fuels.
