Emirates recycles materials equivalent to fully loaded A380 in 2022

Dubai carrier Emirates has recycled more than 500,000 kilograms of plastic and glass over the year 2022, by collecting discarded bottles onboard.

An amount of 500,000kg is almost the same weight as a fully loaded Emirates A380 aircraft.

Last year, we recycled more than 500,000 kilograms of plastic and glass, by collecting discarded bottles onboard for repurposing in Dubai. 500,000 kilograms is almost the same weight as a fully loaded Emirates A380 aircraft! https://t.co/a5jFpRf8Nd pic.twitter.com/FnQkEwM663

— Emirates (@emirates) February 22, 2023

The airline’s cabin crew winnow glass and plastic bottles in each Dubai-inbound flight, prior to dispatching the contents to a recycling plant in the emirate.

The glass is separated by colour and crushed, and the ‘cullet’ or recycled glass ready to be re-melted, is then sent to local glass manufacturers to include in their batch mix for new bottles.

Additionally, the plastic bottles are cleaned, chopped into flakes, melted into pellets, and sent to manufacturers to make other plastic products, diverting thousands of kilograms of glass and plastic from landfills each year.

The recycling initiative onboard was proposed by the Emirates Cabin Crew in 2019.

Sustainable products 
For the last six years, Emirates has offered sustainable blankets made from recycled plastic bottles to economy passengers on long haul flights.

The blankets are made from 28 recycled plastic bottles – the bottles are shredded into plastic chips before being turned into yarn, creating a fleece material.

The blankets, since the introduction of the initiative, have prevented more than 95 million plastic bottles from ending up in a landfill.

Wooden tea and coffee stirrers, paper straws and inflight retail bags are also made using wood and paper from responsibly managed forests, while for young travellers, the airline’s complimentary toy bags, baby amenity kits and plush toys are also made from recycled plastic bottles and other sustainable materials.

Belt bags, duffle bags and backpacks are constructed from a yarn made from 100 per cent recycled plastic bottles.

As a result, the production of the Emirates children’s bags has saved eight million plastic bottles from landfill.

The pouches carrying travel amenities are reusable and made from washable kraft paper with art printed in non-toxic soy-based ink.

The contents include a selection of items – the toothbrush is made from a combination of wheat straw and plastic; the socks and eyeshades are made from recycled plastic; and the packaging used for the dental kit, socks and eyeshades is made from 90 per cent rice paper.

In another green initiative, the carrier announced last month that it completed the ground engine testing for one of its GE90 engines on a Boeing 777-300ER, using 100 per cent sustainable aviation fuel.

Read: UAE’s Emirates completes engine ground testing with 100% sustainable aviation fuel