Icelandair to become first flag carrier to fly domestic routes emissions free

Icelandair is seeking by the end of this decade to become the first national flag carrier airline to operate all its domestic routes with emissions-free aircraft, its chief executive has said. The carrier aims to exploit its homeland’s abundant cheap, carbon-free electricity to fuel the aircraft, either by powering batteries or generating hydrogen for use in fuel cells, according to Bogi Nils Bogason. “We’re focusing on having our domestic operation carbon-free by the end of this decade,” Bogason said. The airline operates three domestic routes from its home base at Reykjavík airport just outside the centre of the capital— to Egilsstadir, Akureyri and Ísafjördur. The longest flight, to Egilsstadir, takes an hour. “We firmly believe it’s realistic that we will be operating a carbon-emission-free aircraft in our domestic operations before the end of this decade,” Bogason said during a visit to London. “Our plans are for that, whether it will be hydrogen-powered or a partly electric-powered aircraft.” Although Norway’s Widerøe airlines last year announced plans for passenger operations with an electric aircraft, Icelandair’s plans are more ambitious.<br/>