Flag-carrier Turkish Airlines has announced a major move in sustainable aviation finance by funding its two A321NEO, new generation aircraft with outstanding environmental performance, through a multicurrency Jolco structure containing sustainability linked loan facility. Structured by Societe Generale, the facility is linked to the Turkish carrier’s achievement of sustainability performance targets (SPTs) with respect to its Key Performance Indicator (KPI) of carbon intensity reduction of its fleet, aligned with international standards for the aviation sector. On the new development, its CFO Murat Şeker said: "As an airline, awarded by World Finance as the 'Most Sustainable Flag Carrier Airline' for three years in a row, we are glad to integrate our sustainability endeavors into aircraft finance, an area where our success is consistently recognized by awards from world-renowned organizations." Turkish Airlines, he stated, has crowned its success in this regard, as having won over 30 international aircraft finance awards in the last 10 years for its successful executions amounting to $16b. With its experienced team, Turkish Airlines' aircraft financing team has not only achieved one of the lowest financing costs in the airline sector but also been recognized annually with various financing awards from globally renowned organizations such as Global Transport Finance, Airline Economics, Airfinance Journal, and Bonds, Loans & Sukuk Türkiye as a result of employing innovative financing models, many of which were groundbreaking in the industry.<br/>
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Getting from A to B faster is generally the goal of most travellers, particularly for those flying long-haul in economy. Now, under a trial that started last month in Asia, shaving precious minutes off hours-long trips is a reality, depending upon what route a pilot chooses to take across the skies. Since early August, aircrew on selected routes between Singapore, Jakarta and a handful of cities in Australia and New Zealand have had the flexibility to choose the most direct and efficient path to get there. It’s about saving time but also fuel – limiting greenhouse gas emissions. Deviating from the fixed network of invisible highways that etch planes’ trajectories around the world and instead allowing a unique flight path for each plane may seem dicey, but it’s not as dangerous as it sounds. Here’s a look at how it works. Singapore, Australia, Indonesia and New Zealand have banded together to make better use of their airspace to trial quicker, more direct flight paths. The three-month trial started on August 5 and will be reviewed in November with a possible view to expanding it to more cities and airlines. The carriers involved are Singapore Airlines Ltd., Qantas Airways Ltd., Air New Zealand Ltd. and Garuda Indonesia and they’re able to take short cuts on 38 routes using what’s called user-preferred routing. Singapore Airlines has said that it’s using the trial on 15 routes, including to Sydney, Christchurch, Darwin and Perth. Garuda said it’s operating user-preferred routing on flights from Jakarta to Sydney and Melbourne. Other destinations involved include Brisbane, Cairns and Adelaide.<br/>