Airlines & Air Freight

I was just wondering how ethanol fuel affects the airlines and air travel in general-

You know, it is possible that ethanols maybe replace gasoline in cars. We "may" be able to have nuclear-powered freighters carry cargo on the oceans. But one of the most important aspects of globalization in the 21st century, in addition to the internet, is the massive interconnectivity afforded by cheap air travel. Airlines, air freight, and even militaries all rely on cheap oil to keep running. And many analysts and engineers state that ethanol fuel will never be able to replace kerosene because it simply doesn't provide enough power when it is burned. . . . and I don't think "not enough power" is something pilots like to hear. . . .

On the other hand, some airlines are pushing for ethanol fuels despite this ominous predictions. Virgin Atlantic pushed ahead in 2008 with a flight with a 747-400 using a 20% coconut oil, 80% kerosene mix. The bad news- the flight was only 200 km. of course, what this will do to coconut prices around the world has yet to be determined. The U.S. Air Force has already tested flights using synfuel- a synthetic fuel made from coal and natural gas (instead of oil). Sir Richard Branson of Virgin Atlantic hopes than algaewill soon become the source of high-density fuels need for the airline industry.

Bob Hastings of the IAR Gas Turbine Laboratory believes that, "operators will start seeing ethanol in their jet fuel in five years time and a significant percentage in 10 years. That's going to be motivated by security-of-supply issues and cost. It will initially hit the field as a blend . . . [and] I don't expect we'll see more than an 85-percent ethanol mix. It's reasonable not to see it in North America, but in other parts of the world, I think we will see it used [in jet aircraft] a lot sooner. In terms of greenhouse gas reduction, biofuels are the only way to go [but that's] a long-term goal."

References:

Scientific American. Feb 25th, 2009.
http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=jumbo-jet-no-longer-biofuel-virgin-after-palm-oil-flight

Aviation Week. Sept. 14th, 2007
http://www.aviationweek.com/aw/generic/story.jsp?id=news/GREE09147.xml&headline=You%20Want%20Green%20Jet%20Fuel,%20Eh?&channel=busav