Qantas Completes First Ever Waste-Free Flight

Image: A Qantas plane mid-flight. (photo via Boarding1Now/iStock Editorial/Getty Images Plus)
Image: A Qantas plane mid-flight. (photo via Boarding1Now/iStock Editorial/Getty Images Plus)
Alex Temblador
by Alex Temblador
Last updated: 3:57 PM ET, Wed May 8, 2019

On Wednesday, Qantas made history when they completed the first-ever zero garbage flight.

It's no secret that airlines aren't the eco-friendliest form of travel. Not only do their CO2 emissions harm the environment, but they generate a lot of landfill trash and plastic waste. Qantas and Jetstar produce "80 fully-laden Boeing 747 jumbos" in waste every year.

Today, a Qantas flight from Sydney to Adelaide delighted passengers by serving food packaged in biodegradable materials like sugar cane and crop starch.

Andrew David, CEO of Qantas' domestic arm told the Sydney Morning Herald, "Our cabin crews see this waste every day and they want it eliminated and increasingly our shareholders are demanding we do more to address our environmental footprint."

The airline is planning to make this change across all their flights and will not be charging customers extra for this.

"These products will be turned into compost and used in gardens and farms across the country. Any plastic items such as bottles or any paper items will be collected and recycled," David said. "We are prepared to make this investment and over the long term it will reduce our costs."


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Alex Temblador

Alex Temblador

Alex Temblador is an award-winning travel writer and the award-winning author of Secrets of the Casa Rosada, Half Outlaw, andWriting An Identity Not Your Own. This Mixed Latine writer is based in Dallas, Texas, and has had publications in Travel + Leisure, Conde Nast Traveler, Lonely Planet, Outside, among many others. She's best known for her articles on diversity, inclusion, and equity in travel. You can reach her at [email protected].

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