The Week In Travel

Plans have been revealed for a new airline which will run on hydrogen-electric power to take to the skies next year. Green energy entrepreneur and founder of renewable energy supplier Ecotricity, Dale Vance, has launched ‘Ecojet’, with the aim of offering domestic, European and eventually long-haul hydrogen-electric flights. Ecojet, which claims to be the ‘flag carrier for Green Britain’, is set to operate flights between Edinburgh and Southampton in early 2024.

Sticking with the sustainability theme, IATA has unveiled a new tool designed to help airports calculate their embodied carbon (the total CO2 associated with the building of terminals and other aviation assets). This will enable airports to record and understand the environmental impact of building new structures or undertaking any extensive refurbishments, and will help airport development teams to work with airport operators on methods to minimise the negative consequences.

In technology news, Emirates has announced the launch of an inflight meal pre-order service for business class passengers. Between 14 days until 24 hours before their flight, passengers will be able to browse the on-board menu either on the Emirates website or via its app and choose from a range of meals. The initiative will be rolled out next week on all flights between Dubai and London’s Heathrow, Gatwick and Stansted airports.

Over in South Korea, eVTOL aircraft developer PLANA has announced a deal to supply 30 AAM aircraft to South Korean commercial airline Hi-Air. The aircraft is designed to provide an efficient and environmentally friendly form of transport, with a cruising speed of 300km/h and a flight range of 500km. This collaboration builds on PLANA’s prior urban endeavours, following a partnership with SkyTaxi for the delivery of 50 aircraft.

And finally, an AirAsia flight attendant’s response to working on a plane with no in-flight entertainment has gone viral after he stunned travellers by providing the entertainment himself. Spontaneously breaking into a rendition of Ed Sheeran’s ‘Perfect’ whilst on the flight from Cambodia to Vietnam, his performance was initially met with confusion from passengers, but soon enough he had the majority of travellers joining in with him.