Scandinavian Airlines has just recently announced it has designed a new landing method. It reports that this new landing method could radically cut fuel emissions. The new technique involves planes gliding into land by following a satellite mapped route. This could actually save 100kg of fuel for a twin engine jet.

Scandinavian Airlines goes on to say that this is the equivalent of almost 300kg of carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere when the fuel is burnt. This is good for the airline, because not only do they save fuel, but they also reduce the amount of CO2 emissions emitted from their aircraft.

The new landing plan is pretty simple. The new method involves the aircraft’s engines to be put into neutral during landing, which allows the plane to just glide in following a route mapped out by a satellite. Just before the airplane comes in to land, the pilot takes control once again.

Old methods have pilots manually control the aircraft as it descends in stages over a large area. This uses a huge about of fuel. Right now, the new technique has only been tested in a simulator, but is being tested on a Boeing 737 in Norway.

If the new idea is approved by civil aviation authorities, it could be introduced to airlines that are run by Scandinavian group. The group does think that the new method would be best suited to quieter airports, which are surrounded by hills and or mountains.

Right now it has been said that airlines produce some two percent of all carbon dioxide that is relapsed from humans and 13 percent of CO2 from travel.