Aero Design Labs (ADL) announced the first revenue flight with its proprietary drag reduction kit installed, has been flown on a Southwest Airlines 737-700 aircraft. Aero Design Labs founder and Executive Chairman Lee Sanders was among the Customers on the historic flight that was recently operated from Dallas to El Paso with the kit installed.
Southwest will be running a network evaluation of drag reduction kits installed on five of its 737-700 aircraft to measure fuel efficiency. ADL's drag reduction kit is designed to reduce the amount of drag on the aircraft, resulting in reduced fuel burn rate and lower carbon intensity.
"This is exciting news for our entire team at Aero Design Labs who have worked diligently over the last several years to bring this important innovation to fruition," stated Jeff Martin, Aero Design Labs President and CEO. "We are delighted that Southwest has chosen to test our kits on five of its aircraft, and we are confident they will be able to take advantage of the reduced fuel burn rate and lowered carbon emissions intensity our kits provide."
"As Southwest Airlines continues to seek opportunities to improve fuel efficiency, which reduces our carbon emissions intensity and helps us address our environmental footprint, we are partnering with ADL to test modifications to five of our 737-700s with the goal of reducing our fuel burn rate on a per aircraft basis," said Chris Monroe, Southwest's Senior Vice President of Finance, Treasury, and Sustainability. "In our constant search for new ways to operate more efficiently and safely, we look forward to this trial of ADL's innovative and proprietary drag reduction kit."
"Our work on these retrofit kits represents the first of what will be many opportunities with other aircraft types as we continue our research and development," commented Chris Jones, Aero Design Labs' Chief Commercial Officer. "Airlines the world over have expressed interest in our programs, and we are working diligently to develop modifications for numerous aircraft types. We applaud and thank Southwest for seeing the value our kits can provide."
