BA jumbo flies 6,000 miles (and burns 5,400 carloads of fuel) with all its 300 seats empty

The Daily Mail (UK) ^ | Last updated at 00:03am on 16th March 2008 | CHRISTOPHER LEAKE

[Army Air Corps]

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[Paleo Conservative]

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[Clintonfatigued]

I’m no eco-maniac, but this is inexcusable.

[cripplecreek]

As a CONSERVative I agree it’s stupid and wastefull.

[Paleo Conservative]

I bet the cargo holds were full.

[Mr. Jeeves]

They have a flight back from Hong Kong to London and needed to get the plane there to carry those passengers. Canceling the return leg, too, wouldn’t have solved anything - and would have made 300 people in Hong Kong boiling mad, since it might have taken several days to book them all on alternate flights.

[elkfersupper]

So, the owner(s) of this aircraft cannot fly it anywhere they want to safely without attracting criticism.

I have lived way too long.

[ThomasThomas]

The more people on the plane the more fuel it uses the more co2 is in the air. If all jets flew empty we could save thousands of tons of emissions each year.

[ChiMark]

So, the eco terrorists will now regulate all
behavior. The fuel was paid. But now were whipped into hysteria over CO2?

Big deal! Whimpy.

[Big Giant Head]

Well, y’know, sometimes I drive my 15 passenger, gas-guzzling van to work, instead of my SUV, though it’s close enough to walk.

I own it, I buy the fuel, enviroweenies can bite me. Humans are NOT causing global warming, so screw it. If they want to fly an empty 747, can afford the fuel, GREAT! It’s their business.

[buccaneer81]

I’m no eco-maniac, but this is inexcusable.

No, it's not. It's called repositioning. The plane has to be where the schedule says it needs to be. British Airways paid for the fuel and lost revenue with empty seats. Capitalism can be cruel at times. It didn't cost the rest of us a dime. And as far as carbon in the atmosphere, I couldn't care less.

[Wingy]

It amazes me that on the strength of a biased story, anyone without direct knowledge, would question business decisions in such a kneejerk fashion.

[umgud]

During its journey from Heathrow, BA Flight 0027 burned a massive 140 tons of fuel – the equivalent of filling 5,400 family-sized cars – and emitted 329 tons of CO2.

Today, another BA jumbo due to fly from Heathrow to Bombay in India is expected to have no passengers on both its outward and return journeys. The 9,000-mile round trip will burn at least 200 tons of fuel and emit 486 tons of CO2.

Too much million man math going on here. One plane will burn 140 tons of fuel, yet emit 329 tons of CO2. The other will burn 200 tons of fuel and emit 486 tons of CO2.

And I'm supposed to believe their calculations on global warming? I know, some scientists will be along to explain this math and when they're done, I'll still call it BS.

[DanielRedfoot]

I heard that they had the Air conditioning of full with all the windows open, were smoking cigarettes, eating junk food and listening to Rush Limbaugh... O and the co-pilot was cleaning gun, which was a Dale Earnhardt signature springfield XD-9

[Tennessee Nana]

Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

When I’m on a really looooooonnnng flight I usually end up helping myself when I want a cup of tea etc...

There’s never enough crew for all the people on board...

I flew on BA years ago when it was BOAC

that flight had some of the nicest crew I’ve ever flown with...

[dfwgator]

How dare you interject facts for the envirowhackos.

[ccmay]

I’m no eco-maniac, but this is inexcusable.

So all the people who paid for a return ticket and are waiting at the other end of the segment can just go hang, eh? Route them home through Timbuktu a day and a half late?

I have an idea, whenever there is a deadhead from England to a pestilential Islamic sh*t-hole, why doesn't BA offer free one-way rides home to the denizens thereof?

-ccm

[Mad_Tom_Rackham]

If I choose to drive my car across the country 5,000 times, with no passengers, while paying for my own fuel, it’s my business.

[Reeses]

A) they usually carry cargo in addition to passengers so the body count isn't the whole story, and B) you have to average the number of passengers over several flights. They had to get where the passengers were.

This kind of flight has to be an oddity else BA would go bankrupt. On average a 747 gets better mileage per passenger than a Toyota Prius and it does it traveling a direct route at 550mph. Also mileage has greatly improved over the years and is set to get better with carbon composite aircraft. Jet airliners are an amazing green technology.

What really is going on is the greens are green with envy that people are going on vacations and money making business trips and they aren't. A leftist cannot stand it if anyone anywhere has it better than they do. They make their happiness contingent on nobody being happier than them.