La Nacion reports that the first aircraft to fly with biofuel began operating yesterday on a weekly basis.

Last night at 10 pm the first biofuel-powered flight arrived in the country from Mexico City. The program aims to encourage sustainable initiatives and actions that reduce the rate of carbon dioxide emissions, CO2 and pollutant materials to enhance the environment.

According to Enrique Sandoval, manager of Aeroméxico in Costa Rica, the country will be the first destination in Latin America where these flights will be operated.

“Costa Rica has a great commitment to the environment, and for this it was choosen,” he adds.

The Green flights, known as “vuelos verdes” in Spanish, will be powered by a corn-based biofuel and operated by a Boeing 737, which expects to save an equivalent of 4.5 tons in CO2 emissions over the course of the flight and the return.

These savings are achieved by using several techniques and procedures both on land and air that include leveraging the technology modern aircraft fleet have, the training of pilots, flight attendants and ground personnel as well as close coordination with providers and entities to control air traffic, creating ideal conditions for the development of these flights.

In regard to on board service, the airline has also implemented green initiatives such as the separation of organic and inorganic waste, reduction of printed materials to generate lower amounts of trash and weight, employed oxo-biodegradable bags (with a faster decomposition rate), added organic textiles including 100% cotton pillows, tablecloths, napkins and biodegradable soap. For foods, organic ingredients will be used on board in order to remove the plastic and foil vitafilm covers, and will use recyclable plastic cups and water bottles (made with 25% recycled PET). Light carts will be used aboard to transport food, which will reduce fuel consumption and therefore the pollutants in the air.