Flying soon? You’ll eat smaller bites!
Jun 10, 2009
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Well, I’ve got an amusing story. There is much discussion about air travel and how it may be very harmful to the atmosphere. In a snapshot, the amount of fuel discharged by airliners is obscene, and may even be more harmful that auto emissions because the air up high is thinner.
More on this later. But Japanese ingenuity is at it again. Japan Airlines (JAL) announced that in order to save fuel, the size of spoons is now smaller . . . as a few kilos saved here and there can add to less fuel consumed annually. Northwest now won’t have spoons on board unless they are necessary, and airlines are considering eliminating air magazines (what will I read now when I need something mindless during turbulence?). Your duty free brochure may be on your entertainment system, and airlines are trying to figure out how to carry less water in cans and in tanks (no comment on what that means for lavatories.
It’s easy to snicker. Remember the story of the airline in the 1980s that saved $$$ by removing olives from salad? But as the cliche goes, a penny saved is a penny earned . . . and until algae or other forms of energy feedstock can fuel planes, at least it’s an effort.
I hope toilet paper isn’t considered to heavy to skimp on, however. 