Fuel Prices Could Spur Innovations, Aiding Environment

KRT) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Jul. 24--The extraordinary fuel costs roiling the U.S. airline industry could lead to long-term environmental benefits by spurring technological and public policy innovations, a panel of aviation experts said Wednesday in Hartford. "It's been very painful, but it has incentivized a discussion here," Carl Burleson, director of the Federal Aviation Administration's Office of Environment and Energy, said at an aircraft propulsion conference at the Connecticut Convention Center. Airlines especially have never been so desperate to reduce fuel expenses, which are projected to climb nearly 50 percent this year, to $61.2 billion, according to the Air Transport Association. Their fuel costs are up more than 265 percent since 2000. Fuel costs are the greatest operating expense for U.S. airlines, having... [read full story]