Virgin plane powered by alcohol lands in London

Sir Richard Branson has welcomed the first commercial flight powered partly by a new form of biofuel converted from alcohol.

Virgin Atlantic’s Boeing 747 aircraft landed at London Gatwick with a fuel blend containing 5 per cent biofuel made from industrial waste gases converted into ethanol.

Sir Richard, the airline’s founder, guided the aircraft towards a stand after it touched down yesterday.

The billionaire told reporters it was “a historic day”. He went on: “The fuel is cleaner than normal jet aviation fuel.

“From the globe’s point of view, if all fuel could be recycled fuel it would make a massive difference from a climate change point of view.”

The biofuel, produced by start-up firm Lanzatech, is certified to make up as much as 50 per cent of a plane’s total fuel supply.