Signol to showcase Virgin Atlantic success at Miami aviation conference

On the 11th of September, at 11:15 am, delegates at the Airline & Aerospace MRO & Flight Operations IT Conference in Miami will hear directly from Virgin Atlantic’s Flight Operations Engineering and Efficiency Manager, Jason Read, about how the airline uses behaviour change service Signol to save thousands of tonnes of CO2 to date.

The presentation, titled “Increasing Fuel Efficiency gains with a pilot-first, behavioural solution,” is part of the conference’s Flight Operations IT track and outlines how Signol’s pilot-first solution reduces Virgin Atlantic’s fuel burn by 0.7%. 

The results are particularly significant considering that the airline has been at the forefront of reducing fuel consumption and CO2 emissions for over 15 years – already upgrading its fleet to newer, fuel-efficient aircraft with a multi-billion-dollar investment and flying the world’s first transatlantic flight on a commercial airline using 100% sustainable aviation fuel (SAF). 

Virgin Atlantic unlocked additional fuel savings and CO2 reductions by integrating Signol’s behavioural science solution into its overall sustainability toolkit, with a focus on improving pilot engagement in fuel efficiency and positively encouraging pilots to implement fuel-saving behaviours more often and more effectively.

Jason Read, Flight Operations Engineering and Efficiency Manager at Virgin Atlantic said: “As part of our strategy to reach the next level in our fuel efficiency programme, we recognised the need to understand how a pilot’s behaviour influences fuel consumption during flights. 

“In our ongoing partnership with Signol’s behaviour change solution, we’ve ensured that this understanding is delivered directly to pilots themselves, who have shown sustained behaviour improvement that led to significant fuel savings and emissions reductions.

“Signol’s ability to increase our fuel reductions by addressing the human factor assists us in continuously moving the dial on our mission to create a low carbon future at pace.” 

Virgin Atlantic and Signol identified four key decisions at each stage of a flight operation where pilots had the potential to improve fuel efficiency. Even with this focus on fuel-saving, the partnership emphasised that safety was always of utmost importance and pilots were only expected to increase fuel-saving decisions in appropriate circumstances. Within these limits, pilots increased the implementation of fuel-saving behaviour for all four operational decisions, by an average of 10.3%.

Signol’s CEO, Michael Fanning, said: “When airlines have already invested significantly in fuel efficiency programmes, as Virgin Atlantic has done for more than a decade, it can be hard to overcome inevitable plateaus in fuel savings and emissions reductions. Nonetheless, strategies for airlines to reach net zero by 2030 or 2050 require ongoing 1 – 2% efficiency gains year-on-year, which is exactly what Signol delivers for clients like Virgin Atlantic, using their existing data and processes.

“Unlocking the next level of fuel efficiency requires innovative approaches that drive continuous improvement, and our work with Virgin Atlantic has shown that Signol’s behaviour-focused solution achieves just that. 

“Behavioural change techniques are creating significant impact across other industries, so we’re excited to be the first to introduce them in airline operations through our partnership with Virgin Atlantic.”

Across aviation clients like Virgin Atlantic, Signol’s service has reduced fuel consumption and emissions by as much as 1%.

Signol’s Virgin Atlantic case study presentation on the 11th of September is the first case study of its kind to be presented publicly on stage and will reveal updated results for the ongoing partnership beyond the recently published 18-month results. It will provide an opportunity for flight operation professionals from other airlines to gain insights and ask questions about Signol’s solution.

The presentation will demonstrate how other airlines can achieve similar impacts with a behaviour-focused fuel efficiency project, including additional fuel reductions which enhance and complement existing fuel efficiency initiatives and better pilot engagement with company fuel-saving goals.

Apart from the highlighted case study presentation, we invite the conference attendees to our vendor showcase, “Fuel Efficiency and Sustainable Aviation Solutions”,—the first session of the Airline & Aerospace MRO & Flight Operations IT Conference Americas on the 10th of September.

More details and the full agenda of the conference can be found here.

To learn more about our work with Virgin Atlantic during the first 18 months of rolling out our behavioural science service, download our case study here.