Flybe is today named as the most environmentally friendly airline using Heathrow.
The regional carrier’s small turboprop aircraft achieved the best noise and emissions performance at the west London hub less than a year since starting routes to Edinburgh and Aberdeen.
Data behind Heathrow’s latest ‘Fly Quiet and Green’ league table also shows a 30% reduction in the number of aircraft departing in sensitive night time hours this year.
The performance of the top 50 busiest airlines at Heathrow are ranked in the latest league table on seven noise and emission metrics between October and December 2017.
Aer Lingus appears after Flybe with British Airways short haul in third position followed by Finnair, SAS, Etihad Airways, Delta Air Lines, United Airlines, Air India and Qantas in the top ten.
The worst performing airline in the quarter was Kuwait Airways, below Turkish Airlines, El Al, Austrian Airlines, Eurowings, Air China and Saudi Arabian Airlines.
British Airways long-haul was in 21st place with Virgin Atlantic 22nd.
Flybe debuted in 29th place in its first league ranking in mid-2017, and has quickly climbed up the ranking through ongoing engagement with technical teams at Heathrow.
The carrier worked with Heathrow to increase its use of continuous descent approaches into the airport. This flight procedure reduces noise as it requires less engine thrust and keeps aircraft higher for longer.
Flybe pilots have also been more successful in keeping their flights within the corridors of government-designated ‘noise preferential routes’ – referred to in the league table as ‘track keeping.’
Co-operation with Heathrow’s noise technical teams also led to marked improvements in track keeping for other carriers.
Cathay Pacific is up 11 places in the latest quarter and now has a perfect score in that metric and Oman Air climbed 15 places due to its nearly perfect (99%) score.
The latest ‘Fly Quiet and Green’ scores also reflect a drop in the number of aircraft departing during sensitive night hours in 2017.
Airlines reduced the number of late running departures between 11.30pm and 4.30am by more than 30% versus 2016.
Chapter number scores – the metric which tracks the make-up of airlines’ fleets – across the league table improved by 10% over the last year, showing airlines are using modern aircraft types on Heathrow routes.
Polish airline LOT achieved a 20% improvement in its scores after introducing a new Boeing 737 MAX aircraft at Heathrow on some services in the last quarter of the year.
Heathrow chief executive John Holland-Kaye said: “The latest ‘Fly Quiet and Green’ results show the great progress that Heathrow’s airlines have made to help us be a better neighbour.
“Last year we announced our intention of halving the number of late running flights over five years – I hope that the 30% reduction in the first year alone will give confidence that we say what we will do and we do what we say.”
Flybe chief operating officer Luke Farajallah said: “We are naturally delighted to have topped the rankings at Heathrow as the best operator in noise and emissions performance, especially so early on in our operations there.
“Flybe acknowledges and takes seriously its environmental responsibilities. It is central to what we do, informing our choice of using Q400 turboprops on the right routes and being one of the world’s most technologically advanced aircraft, to making constant improvements in our operational processes.
“As one of Heathrow’s smaller operators, we are obviously very proud to have outperformed most of the biggest and best airlines in the world.”