Back to the fuel efficient future: airlines go turboprops

When it comes to cars, newer usually (but not always) mean more efficient. The airline industry, though is taking a look back at turboprop planes as a way to save fuel. As Marketplace reported the other day, the smoother and faster rides provided by jets are also more fuel-thirsty than planes powered by giant spinning blades. Therefore, more and more airlines are adding propeller-powered planes that, according to one Continental representative interviewed by Marketplace, are 30 percent more fuel efficient per seat than jet planes. In some cases, airlines can also use larger turboprop planes instead of smaller jet planes and carry more passengers. One of two companies that still makes turboprop planes, Bombardier in Canada saw a jump from 24 planes in 2006 to almost 100 in 2007.
Photo by Maxf. Licensed under Creative Commons license 2.0.

[Source: Marketplace, thanks to Chris]