Virgin Atlantic Goes Green
Posted by Cate O’Malley on Growers and Grocers.
I’ve been a long-time fan of Richard Branson, the Chairman of Virgin Atlantic. Something about the unique way he does business intrigued me long ago, and I tend to keep an eye on what he’s doing, and how he’s doing it. A few months ago, Virgin Atlantic announced that they are remaking themselves into a “green airline,” hoping to not only lure eco-friendly travelers, but do a little good for the earth along the way. Chairman Branson announced a multitude of things they planned to change, including cutting the carbon dioxide emissions of both Virgin Atlantic and the entire aviation industry by a whopping 25%.
“What we’re suggesting would save over 150 million tons of carbon emissions a year,” he said in a statement made in October. “With global warming, the world is headed for a catastrophe. The aviation industry must play a part in averting that.”
Among Branson’s plans: painting planes with a lighter type of paint to reduce the weight of the plane and the amount of fuel needed to get it where it needs to go (talk about thinking outside of the box!), requiring pilots to implement a more fuel-efficient way of landing their aircrafts (called the “Continuous Descent Approach”) and more.
A few of Branson’s grand ideas will take some two plus years to implement, but at least he has the right idea, and has the power to effect change. He has gone one step better though, and has contacted the heads of other airlines to get them on board as well. Good for you, Sir Richard, good for you. You can read more about Branson’s commitment right here.
Photo from http://www.virginatlantic.com/.
Like most green advertising, Branson’s Virgin Airline is more smoke than substanive change. Virgin is a staunch backer of the announced expansion of Heathrow Airport, a move that would increase air traffic to by 40%.