A flight without any single-use plastics on board it to be operated by Etihad Airways over Easter.
The bid to raise awareness of the effects of plastic pollution will see the flight depart Abu Dhabi on April 21 and land in Brisbane on 22 April – Earth Day.
Etihad’s supplier of amenity products has collaborated to provide sustainable amenity kits and eco-thread blankets produced out of recycled plastic bottles.
Edible coffee cups, made entirely out of natural grain products, are among items being used to replace plastics.
As a result of planning the Earth Day flight, Etihad aims to remove up to 20% of single-use plastic items on board by June 1.
The airline expects to abolish 100 tonnes of single-use plastics from its in-flight service by the end of the year.
This is part of a pledge to reduce single-use plastic usage by 80% both in-flight and across the entire organisation by the end of 2022.
Etihad Aviation Group chairman Mohamed Mubarak Fadhel Al Mazrouei said: “This step is an extension of Etihad’s pioneering environmental efforts. Inaugurating 2019 with the locally sourced biofuel flight and the operation of the longest single-use plastic free flight are testament to our commitment to leading effective change towards sustainability.”
CEO Tony Douglas added: “There is a growing concern globally about the overuse of plastics which can take thousands of years to decompose.
“We discovered we could remove 27 million single-use plastic lids from our inflight service a year and, as a leading airline, it’s our responsibility to act on this, to challenge industry standards and work with suppliers who provide lower impact alternatives.”