#INTHEAIREVERYWHERE

Smart Marketing Alternative Facts or Faked News?
  
     Erik (the Red)—a true Viking—woke up one day and found himself an outlaw from Iceland for three years due to a dispute, notwithstanding the fact that he killed a few people along the way.
      Being outlawed, Erik sailed west in year 982 to a somewhat mysterious and little-known land.
      He rounded the southern tip of this mystery island (later known as Cape Farewell, and Greenland) and sailed up its western coast.
      Erik eventually reached a part of the island that, for the most part, seemed ice-free and consequently had conditions—similar to those of Iceland—that promised growth and future prosperity.
      According to the Saga of Erik the Red, he spent his three years of exile exploring this land.

Tales Of Greenland

      When Erik returned to Iceland after his exile had expired, he is said to have brought with him stories of a “Greenland.”
      Erik deliberately gave the land the name “Greenland” as a more appealing moniker than “Iceland” in order to lure potential settlers.
      Erik reasoned, “People would be attracted to go there if it had a favorable name.” 
      Erik, as it turns out, understood that the success of any settlement in Greenland would need the support of as many people as possible.
      His salesmanship proved successful, as many people (especially Vikings) became convinced that Greenland offered a great opportunity.

Going Green Follows

      All of this said, there is no denying that the Nordic people can gaze back proudly at a long, legendary history of “going green.”
      Green technologies are in the fabric of their history and quite natural to the Nordic people.
      Thus, as the world continues to explore the development of sustainable technologies, “Green Aviation” seems like a natural thing to do. 
      Farfetched?
      Maybe, and yet here is also an excellent reputation for respecting for nature and preserving the environment.

MORE Inconvenient Truth Emerging

      As that famous Al Gore film underscored, we humans are polluting our planet and emitting too much Green House Gases (GHG) and CO2 into the atmosphere, thereby contribution to global warming. The Nordic countries have taken the issue very seriously.
      They began aggressive development of technical solutions such as Wind Mills, Geothermal systems, and much more in order to tackle the issue of reversing the global warming trend as well as reducing general pollution.

What Role For Transportation?

      The transport challenge was taken to heart as well.
      True, there are no Nordic Electric Cars (EVs)—except the Danish Ellert that appeared in 1987, and only for a couple of years—nor trains, buses or metros, but the Nordic countries did initiate converting public transportation into sustainable systems as well as moving toward EVs.

Gasless Norway Ahead
 
     For example, 37 percent of cars bought in Norway during the month of February 2017 were all EVs.
      No less astounding is the edict that the countdown is on—with a goal of the year 2025, Norway plans to prohibit gasoline and diesel cars from operating in the country entirely! 

SJF Airports

      As you read this, Avinor is one of the first airport companies in the Nordic countries—together with Stockholm’s Arlanda airport in Sweden—to already offer a blend-in of Sustainable Jet Fuels (SJFs) to their customers at Oslo Gardemoen Airport.

Needless To Say, Say It Anyway

      In the meantime, the EU has imposed strict limits on CO2 emissions (a 40 percent emission reduction by 2030 compared to 1990).
      Into all of this, the aviation industry has had to gear up to this challenge.
      Needless to say that the COP21 Global Agreement reached in Paris last year pushed this subject further.
      Recent mission reduction initiatives taken by ICAO, IATA, ATAG and many other institutions have also assisted in moving the global aviation industry away from fossil fuels (Jet A1 kero) and toward a gradual transition into sustainable and renewable energy by converting plant biomass, waste, and other renewable feedstocks to produce Sustainable Jet Fuels.

Greener Nordics

      So just like many other countries in the EU and around the globe, numerous green initiatives were initiated in the Nordic countries to create societies that would help reduce GHG/CO2 emissions, lower pollution, and create a cleaner as well as a healthier environment.
      Aviation in the Nordic countries needed to be part of that global movement.

Getting On Board

      The first of a series of Green Aviation Days at Copenhagen Airport was organized in 2012. The events took place in the old, historic passenger terminal, which was built in 1939 and designed by one of our great architects, Wilhelm Lauritzen.
      Since then, numerous similar sustainable aviation events have been held in all the Nordic countries with the aim of advancing a sustainable aviation industry and making the public aware of the sustainability efforts undertaken by the aviation industry.

Stakeholders & Kid Stuff

      The different stakeholders in this category of aviation, including “future” passengers—young school kids—have attended these events.
      In 2015 we arranged with LEGO to provide 1 million Lego bricks and invited young school children from the surrounding schools to build “green airplanes and airports,” all part of a sustainable society. The children were interviewed about their Lego models and explained very well and seriously their objective to lower pollution and GHG emissions.

Techno SJFs

      As described in my previous article, we have several technologies available for the production of SJFs—alternative jet fuels—and many more shall be available during the coming decades.
      However, certain key criteria are vital for a sustainable aviation industry. Here is a quick summary of these key issues for the aviation industry:

Despite global society’s best hopes and dreams for a green world, only a small (albeit growing) number of daily flights in commercial aviation utilize biofuels.       Just click this global biofuel flight map and see for yourself.     United Airlines, SAS, KLM, Lufthansa and some others have marshaled scheduled biofueled flights, which measured against global airline operations are a modest first step in the right direction.

Certification Mandatory

      ATAG and IATA estimate that over time and with 100 percent use of SJFs, an 80 to 90 percent reduction in GHG emission will be achievable.
      However, it will be mandatory to certify the SJFs in order to qualify for a true and realistic GHG/CO2 emission reduction as the full footprint of the SJF process from field-to-airplane must be certified in order to prove the reduction.
      This process will be a major challenge (although quite feasible) as in the early stage of SJFs global introduction it will require hard work by SJF producers and the aviation stakeholders.
      What is needed immediately is close cooperation with the verification authorities or certification institutes such as RSB (RoundTable for Sustainable Biomaterials) and other similar organizations.
      But this certification is vital, as it does not make sense to go through the entire transition from fossil Jet A-1 kerosene onto SJFs if that expensive and laborious move does not solve the key issue—that of reducing GHG emissions in the aviation industry.

An Even Better World

      Looking ahead, we can only hope that the day will dawn wherein as a result on innovation and determination, aviation contributes to reducing—and hopefully even reversing—global warming as well as extreme weather conditions.
      It’s good to never forget that an extra benefit is the estimation that over time SJFs will be able to reduce the cost of energy for the aviation industry as well as provide a more stable and dependable supply compared to fossil kerosene, which is often subject to political conflicts and other unpredictable interferences in the supply chain.

 

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