Doha: A Qatar Airways flight has made history by being the first commercial flight to be powered by fuel derived from natural gas.
The Airbus A340-600 flew from London Gatwick to Doha using a mixture of synthetic Gas to Liquids (GTL) kerosene and conventional oil-based kerosene fuel
The blend, which will be known as GTL jet fuel, produces fewer emissions and sulphur dioxide.
It took more than two years for a consortium consisting of Airbus, Qatar Airways, Qatar Petroleum, Qatar Science & Technology Park, Rolls-Royce, Shell and WOQOD to develop the fuel.
Qatar Airways Chief Executive Officer Akbar Al Baker, said: “Qatar Airways is proud to be associated with this consortium and to become the world’s first airline to use this new fuel technology on a commercial passenger flight.
“Once again, Qatar Airways has shown its commitment to the environment and we expect this alternative fuel to provide benefits, particularly the improvement of air quality. This milestone flight is the first step in making this alternative fuel available to airlines. Qatar Airways looks forward to continuing to work with the consortium members to further develop this exciting project and commit towards a cleaner environment.”
