Airlines’ weight-loss plan to save fuel (lead)
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Further to recent revelations that airlines have been flying slower to conserve fuel, another drastic measure to lower fuel costs is being implemented some airlines, AFP has reported. Carriers have been gradually shedding weight from all areas of the aircraft in attempt to make flights lighter, and therefore more fuel efficient. Airlines are taking the matter, with such measures as removing the number of pages in in-flight magazines, changing to light-weight cutlery and crockery, and carrying less water on board. “Individually they may sound quite trivial but they all add up,” said Andrew Herdman, Director General of the Association of Asia Pacific Airlines. “Obviously, the more expensive the fuel, the more the savings translate into. Given that oil prices are at a record high and have quadrupled over the past few years, there’s even more effort,” he told AFP.
Among the airlines introducing such measures is Japan Airlines (JAL), which has reduced pages in its in-flight magazines and slimmed the handles of its forks and spoons. “It’s important to make every little effort, which matters when you carry hundreds of passengers on a flight and operate 365 days a year”, said JAL spokesman Hisanori Iizuka. “This is part of our efforts to slim down everything possible,” he added.
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