Iberia has embarked on a series of trials to cut fuel consumption as part of the Dynamic Optimisation of the Route in Flight (DORIS) programme.
DORIS aims to make the most efficient use of transatlantic airspace by allowing aircraft to modify their flight plans en route to take advantage of changing winds.
As long as air traffic controllers authorise it, pilots can change their route from that filed before take-off.
Iberia says initial analysis indicates that up to 2% of fuel can be saved. This would equate to around 400kg (882lb) of fuel on a Madrid-Guatemala City sector, for example.
DORIS is part of the Atlantic Interoperability Initiative to Reduce Emissions (AIRE) programmme, one result of a co-operative agreement between the US FAA and the European Union that aims to reduce the environmental impact of commercial aviation.
Under the AIRE umbrella, Iberia is also now making use of continuous descent approaches into Madrid Barajas Airport. Around 600 such approaches have so far been made, all at night and when traffic density allows. Such approaches reduce noise, cut fuel consumption and can lower carbon dioxide emissions by up to 25%.
Source: Air Transport Intelligence news
