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1 Clean Getaway: Meat Waste Joins Biofuels At Luxury Jet Show

By Allison Lampert

LAS VEGAS, Oct 22 (Reuters) - At the world's biggest industry show in Las Vegas luxury jets are enticing buyers with their streamlined shapes, plush cabins - and increasingly, their usage of alternative fuels.

Fuel manufacturers and jetmakers are keen to display unique forms of air travel fuel considered less harmful to the climate, from used cooking oil to the definitely less waste.

Business jet operators, like airline companies, have bowed to ecological pressure on aviation and devoted to halving carbon emissions by 2050 compared to 2005.

Their hope is that adopting sustainable fuel to suppress emissions might make organization jets more appealing to ecologically mindful buyers - specifically corporations dealing with concerns over sustainability from investors or green project groups.

The schedule of less polluting personal jets could also spare the abundant and popular the negative 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 most recent waste-based fuels include "fats, grease and oils that are by-products of the food market," said Bryan Sherbacow, primary business officer of Boston-based biofuel producer World Energy, which produces fuel from meat waste used by Gulfstream.

"All of our product is inedible."

A few of the other 79 airplane on display are expected to be powered by 150,000 gallons of other sustainable fuel blends anticipated to be pumped at the program.

FLIGHT SHAMING

Private jets account for less than 0.1% of overall yearly carbon emissions internationally, however can give off, typically, up to 20 times more carbon emissions per traveler mile than jetliners, according to the London-based private charter firm Victor.

Prince Harry has actually protected his periodic usage of private jets to guarantee his family's safety, and has stated that on the uncommon celebrations he does not fly commercially he offsets his emissions.

But planemakers say occurrences such as the furore over his itinerary have included fresh difficulties for an industry already aiming to validate its contribution to cutting corporate costs.

"Incidents of flight shaming including using personal jets are unfortunate when you consider that our market 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 help the market make inroads with corporations and wealthy buyers. According to industry information, billionaires only have a 19% service jet ownership rate.

But even an image makeover - with jets sporting sticker labels like "this aircraft flies on eco-friendly fuels" and organisers including alternative fuel pumps for visiting aircrafts - is unlikely to please all critics at the Oct 22-24 luxury jet event.

Environmentalists and some analysts remain skeptical that biojetfuels, normally combined 50-50 with kerosene, will make a significant influence on public understandings about luxury travel.

"No amount of jatropha curcas or Brazil-nut fuel can make business jets look eco-friendly," stated air travel analyst Richard Aboulafia.

Demand from organization jet operators for renewable fuels now far exceeds supply and their interest could drive future production, Sherbacow said.

World Energy, which produces 40 million gallons of biofuel at its California plant, could broaden production approximately 150 million gallons by 2022.

Corporate charter business and specialists are likewise seeing more interest from clients who wish to buy carbon credits to offset emissions from their flights.

Brian Proctor, CEO of Mente Group, a U.S. consultancy, said emissions contributed in a business jet usage research study his business recently finished for a Fortune 500 business.

"At the end of the day, I think that price, cost per hour, range, speed and performance, that's still the (sales) motorist. But I think people are ending up being more familiar with the sustainability of operations and how it impacts the planet." (Reporting By Allison Lampert, Editing by Tim Hepher and Alexandra Hudson)