Stockholm, February 1, 2017 – An ATR 72-600 of the Swedish carrier BRA (former Braathens Regional) took off from Stockholm-Bromma today to Umeå fueled at 45 percent with fossil-free used cooking oil, marking the first biofuel-powered flight of an ATR aircraft.
BRA provides an essential air service to link their main hub of Stockholm-Bromma to 12 Swedish regions. The ATRs of BRA provide an unrivaled performance advantage in months with adverse weather conditions. The airline is particularly committed to environmental preservation and has already started replacing their Saab 2000s with modern ATR 72-600s, recognized as the most fuel-efficient aircraft on the regional market.
Several research and development initiatives are currently underway in Sweden to produce biofuels from different types of wood. In Sweden, forests cover more than 50 percent of the country, and grow at a rate of 120 million cubic meters annually. Making domestic air traffic in Sweden completely fossil-free would require less than 2 percent of the total annual forest growth.
Thanks to its lighter structure, optimized speed and engines designed for short routes, ATR aircraft already demonstrate the best environmental performance in its segment. Nonetheless, ATR continues to invest in virtuous technologies and contributes to European research and development efforts to take advances in environmental performance even further. ATR encourages the use of alternative fuels and offers support to customers and local governments in developing a comprehensive business plan, from fuel selection to routing, certification and availability for seamless airline operations.
Christian Clemens, Chief Executive Officer of BRA, declared: “Sweden is currently debating a new tax on aviation. It will have a minimal impact on emissions, and will unfortunately slow down the pace in which we can continue to make aviation more sustainable. The ATR 72-600, especially if powered by biofuel, is the optimal transportation on many of our routes and features the highest standards of environmental care.”
Christian Scherer, Chief Executive Officer of ATR, declared: “Today’s challenge is to get a large-scale production of biofuels at affordable costs while avoiding a negative impact on the environment. Swedish airlines like BRA can take advantage of the massive expansion of its forests, along with the operation of fuel-efficient turboprops, to reach the ambitious goal of halving their CO2 emissions by 2025.”
About BRA
BRA (formerly Braathens Aviation, Malmö Aviation, Braathens Regional and Sverigeflyg) carries out operations related to air travel with a focus on domestic and regional flights in Sweden. Its
operating hub is Stockholm-Bromma Airport, the airport nearest downtown Stockholm. BRA has a third of the domestic passengers in Sweden, operating 13 routes connecting Sweden from Umeå in the north to Malmö in the south. BRA has 1100 employees and is certified with ISO 14001.
About ATR
Founded in 1981, ATR is the world leader on the market for below-90-seat regional aircraft. Since its creation, ATR has sold over 1,500 aircraft. ATR aircraft equip the fleets of some 200 airlines in nearly 100 countries. ATR is an equal partnership between two major European aeronautics players, Airbus and Leonardo. Based in Toulouse, France, ATR is well established worldwide with a large customer support and sales network, including Customer Service Centers, training centers and warehouses. For more information, please visit http://www.atr-aircraft.com.
