Virgin biofuel flight takes off next month

Who said blokes with beards never achieve anything? Aside from Noel Edmonds’ Deal or no Deal (the only gameshow name to mention a Kentish town twice in its title) comeback, that Richard Branson fellow hasn’t done too badly either.

The bearded knight is now planning to fly one of his Virgin Atlantic planes (not personally) from London to Amsterdam next month, using biofuel instead of traditional aviation fuel.

The Virgin Atlantic 747 will fly from London Heathrow to Amsterdam on a demonstration flight, with no passengers on board, using a truly sustainable type of biofuel that doesn’t compete with food and fresh water resources. The flight, in conjunction with Boeing and engine maker GE Aviation, is part of Virgin Atlantic’s drive to reduce its environmental impact wherever possible. The demonstration forms part of Virgin Atlantic’s vision for what the aviation industry can achieve by using clean-fuel technology to reduce carbon emissions.

Sir Richard Branson, President of Virgin Atlantic, said: “This breakthrough will help Virgin Atlantic to fly its planes using clean fuel sooner than expected. The demonstration flight next month will give us crucial knowledge that we can use to dramatically reduce our carbon footprint. Virgin Group pledged to invest all its profits from its transportation companies towards developing clean energy and with this breakthrough we are well down the path to achieving our goals.”