Laurel James with her colleague, Congresswoman DelBene (left) and U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack

Alaska Airlines made history on Monday, November 14th, flying the first commercial flight using fuel made from trees and forest residuals. Laurel James, a UW ChemE staff member who worked with Prof. Dan Schwartz on the grant, was among the passengers and experienced the fruit of their work firsthand. 

James and Prof. Schwartz are part of the Northwest Advanced Renewables Alliance (NARA), an alliance of educational institutions and private industry to build a supply chain for aviation biofuel using forest residuals as an alternative to petroleum-based jet fuel. The alliance is funded through a five-year grant provided by USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture. 

A member of the Yakima Nation, James worked with native scholars and formed collaborations with tribal communities who were vital in the sourcing and development of the biofuel. From Washington State, Muckleshoot Tribe participated in the buiofuel production and they too, enjoyed being the first passengers of a flight made possible by their efforts.

Congresswoman Suzan DelBene (WA) and Alaska Airlines executives gave a press conference in Seattle before taking off to Washington D.C., where they were greeted by U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack. 

For James, 2016 was a year of celebration. She was selected among the inaugural Husky100 for representing the best of the University of Washington, and the fruitition of this historic flight marked the culmination of the five-year project.