UK-based Thomson Airways is getting in on the alternative fuels trend. It became the first UK airline to fly passengers using biofuel Thursday with a flight from Birmingham, England to Arrecife in the Canary Islands.
The trip was made by 232 passengers on a Boeing 757-200.
As Huffington Post Travel previously reported, the use of alternative fuels by airlines has been gaining steam. Other European carriers like Lufthansa, KLM and Finnair have also launched biofueled flights.
“This is a very exciting day for Thomson Airways and a further step in our commitment to invest in sustainable aviation biofuel," Chris Browne, Thomson Airways' managing director said in a press release. "Most strikingly, sustainable biofuel has the potential to reduce aviation emissions by up to 80% in the long term.”
Thomson Airways is using fuel supplied by Dutch-based company SkyNRG, which also supplied KLM and Finnair. KLM was part of the consortium behind SkyNRG.
Thomson says that following this flight, there will be a short gap before the daily operations start from early 2012.
The airline had previously announced in July that its first biofuel flight was to take place July 28.