Rowsell flight takes off into the unknown

A light aircraft powered by fuel made from waste plastic will attempt to enter the record books later this year.

Rowsell: Making flying sustainable

Pilot Jeremy Rowsell plans to fly from Sydney to London in a single engine plane, a Cessna 182; the first time such a journey has been completed by an aircraft of its type.

He will also be the first pilot to fly an aircraft using a synthetic fuel derived from end-of-life plastic waste bio fuel as a single source of power.

The ‘On Wings of Waste’ project will use fuel produced by Irish company Cynar.

“Flying is critical to the economy, vital for saving lives and is the best way to experience the planet we live on. We can’t stop flying but how can we do that and do it sustainably?” said Rowsell.

“Our world is choking on plastic waste. In the middle of the Pacific Ocean is the great Pacific garbage patch – a mire of plastic waste spanning millions of square kilometres. If it were a country, it would be one of the biggest on the planet,” he added.

“Our objective is to prove that this synthetic fuel made from plastic waste is viable for a number of practical solutions and by doing so replace the need to use fossil fuels from conventional sources.

“What better way to showcase this then via aviation – an industry that is looking to diesel fuel to provide a solution to the problems it faces with current avgas fuels that are costly and environmentally damaging.”

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