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FAA: New Flt Navigational Technology

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CaptJax

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FAA: New flight navigational technology is greener

By MALIA WOLLAN, Associated Press Writer

Friday, September 12, 2008


(09-12) 18:17 PDT SAN FRANCISCO, (AP) --

Federal Aviation Administration officials gathered Friday to promote new flight and navigational technologies that reduce fuel use and greenhouse gas emissions while also decreasing passenger delays.

FAA officials at San Francisco International Airport watched the arrival of a blue-tailed Boeing 777 Airways New Zealand flight from Auckland to showcase airplanes controlled and monitored by satellite-based GPS rather than ground-based radar.

The flight was the first of its kind for the airline and part of an ongoing FAA effort to streamline trans-Pacific flights.

After exiting the plane, the Airways New Zealand pilot said Friday's flight saved 1,200 gallons of jet fuel and avoided 12 tons of carbon from being emitted into the air. Plus, passengers arrived five minutes ahead of schedule.

"From taxi to touch down, it's just flat-out green," FAA's Acting Administrator Robert Sturgell said of the coordinated use of GPS by airline pilots and air traffic control personnel.

The GPS-enabled technology allows planes to take more direct and fuel-efficient flight routes. Sturgell likened it to building a car pool lane in the sky.

Friday's display was part of a long-term initiative by the FAA to overhaul the technology used by the nation's air traffic controllers.

The FAA calls the technology upgrade Next Generation Air Transportation System, or NextGen, which they say will improve safety, decrease delays and lower fuel costs for the struggling airline industry.

"With jet fuel going for three to four dollars a gallon, and more people than ever wanting to fly, we need to do everything we can to ensure that aviation remains a safe and efficient means of getting there," said Sturgell.

The FAA's GPS-based system requires increased collaboration between airline pilots navigating planes and air traffic controllers monitoring their movement.

The new system allows pilots more freedom in determining the most efficient route to a destination by climbing to high elevations more quickly and taking longer, more gradual descents to the runway.

The FAA's NextGen program is gradually being introduced across the country, with nationwide conversion to satellite-based air traffic control expected in 2025. The program is slated to cost taxpayers $16 billion to $22 billion, Sturgell said.
 
1 US gallon of fuel produces 20 pounds of carbon dioxide. Yes, 6.7 pounds of jet fuel produces 20 pounds of carbon dioxide.

more info
http://www.fueleconomy.gov/Feg/co2.shtml



1200 gal. x 20 lbs =24,000 lbs.
24,000 lbs / 2000 = 12 tons

OR
Convert gallons to pounds
1200 gal x 6.7 = 8040 lbs of fuel
1 pound of fuel produces 3.15 pounds of carbon dioxide
8040 x 3.15 = 25,326 lbs

To be precise: Emissions are
19.564 pounds of CO2 per gallon of motor gasoline,
22.384 pounds of CO2 per gallon of diesel fuel,
21.095 pounds of CO2 per gallon of jet fuel



Any kind of carbon tax will get very expensive very quickly for every airline.
 
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GPS monitoring is long over due.

With GPS ATC, and TCAS2 combined with lateral offset should open up the skies.
 
1 US gallon of fuel produces 20 pounds of carbon dioxide. Yes, 6.7 pounds of jet fuel produces 20 pounds of carbon dioxide.

more info
http://www.fueleconomy.gov/Feg/co2.shtml



1200 gal. x 20 lbs =24,000 lbs.
24,000 lbs / 2000 = 12 tons

OR
Convert gallons to pounds
1200 gal x 6.7 = 8040 lbs of fuel
1 pound of fuel produces 3.15 pounds of carbon dioxide
8040 x 3.15 = 25,326 lbs

To be precise: Emissions are
19.564 pounds of CO2 per gallon of motor gasoline,
22.384 pounds of CO2 per gallon of diesel fuel,
21.095 pounds of CO2 per gallon of jet fuel



Any kind of carbon tax will get very expensive very quickly for every airline.

Your stats see correct. But the article didn't say CO2 it sad CARBON

"avoided 12 tons of carbon from being emitted into the air".

Maybe they ment C02, but that is not what they said. Looking at the math, the 8040lbs of fuel produced 25,326 lbs of CO2. Most of that weight is from the O2 (air) not the fuel anyway.

But hey, the Global warming crowd say the biggest source of greenhouse gas in the world is from cow farts (methane) and they want us to stop eating beef to reduce the cattle population. Not!

Just my opinion.....

FNG
 
Yup they said carbon but they are talking about carbon dioxide. They tend to call it carbon, I don't know why. Perfect combustion produces large amounts of water and carbon dioxide, natural life sustaining compounds. The pollution is the trace amounts of other undesirable compounds. But you already know all this.

Meanwhile the sun’s dimming and the PDO flopped to its negative mode. Cooling is in our future. I guess that’s why they call it climate change now instead of global warming.

Oh wait a minute, didn’t their models all show constant warming each and every year.
 
I think the misspeak is because Sturgell is an idiot.

Look at the staffing, workload, and morale of any ATC facility if you're not sure.
 
UA Teams With FAA To Save Fuel

United Teams with FAA to Save Fuel, Aid Environment
PR Newswire
Posted: 2008-11-12 09:00:00

CHICAGO, Nov. 12 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- United Airlines will become the first U.S. carrier to demonstrate how next-generation technologies could save more than two thousand gallons of fuel and cut up to 55,000 pounds of carbon emissions on a single, trans-Pacific flight.


As part of the Asia and South Pacific Initiative to Reduce Emissions (ASPIRE), United flight 870 will fly from Sydney to San Francisco on Nov. 14 and will use up to the minute fuel data, priority takeoff clearance, the opening up of restricted airspace, and new arrival procedures -- all of which are possible with new technology -- to generate significant fuel and emissions savings. Within minutes of landing, United will calculate and publish the actual savings realized on this flight.


"California leads the nation in protecting the environment and fighting climate change so it's fitting that United Airlines' first flight as part its new initiative to reduce emissions is landing here in our great state," says Governor Schwarzenegger. "This exciting new technology will generate significant fuel and greenhouse gas emissions savings and shows the world how innovation can help reduce our carbon footprint."


Prior to departure, United will evaluate flight data and will file a preferred route that is most efficient for weather conditions. After reaching cruising altitude, United Captain Tom Spratt may alter his flight path, which is usually not possible with today's technology, to take advantage of updated weather conditions. Ninety minutes from San Francisco, Captain Spratt will request a special arrival procedure developed by United and Boeing that will generate additional fuel savings with a smooth, continuous descent rather than the traditional step-down approach.


"Next-generation technology and modernization of our air traffic control system could save billions of pounds of carbon emissions every year, and United is pleased to partner with the FAA and provide important data from ASPIRE to demonstrate these savings," says Pete McDonald, Chief Administrative Officer -- United Airlines. "New technology will also improve air travel for millions of consumers by reducing delays and ensuring a more consistent travel experience."


Data from the flight will be analyzed by NASA and the FAA in its ongoing effort to accelerate the development and implementation of new operational ground systems and pilot procedures to reduce the environmental footprint for all phases of flight.


ASPIRE is a multilateral partnership of the Federal Aviation Administration, Airservices Australia, and Airways New Zealand. United and Boeing have been partnering on the Tailored Arrivals program in San Francisco to evaluate fuel reduction techniques on descent and to facilitate the development of modern Air Traffic Control systems.
 
Any kind of carbon tax will get very expensive very quickly for every airline.
And that is a point we should be VERY aware of.

I recently got in a discussion with a girl who was a fresh EPA policy maker / Counsel in a bar and she was arguing that we need a CARBON TAX NOW and that airlines would just have to absorb it.

I asked if she knew we already paid a carbon tax? She said, no, you don't. Well, every gallon of fuel is taxed and fuel is carbon, same thing. She said we needed additional taxes. Of course additional taxes mean higher ticket prices. She said not the airlines could absorb the taxes.

Well, what about the price increases this year? Did they absorb those?

I'm telling you the government, even their attorneys, are not that bright and they regulate without being aware of what they don't know. She did not buy her ticket, the government bought it. I asked her what it cost, she did not know and did not care.

Aviation is something less than 2% of global carbon emissions. If the government wants to fix something, change the law so I can fill my car with natural gas (which is illegal in my State). There are so many ways to reduce carbon emissions, but most of them are illegal thanks to oil and distributor lobbyists that own the ears of our Representatives.
 

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