British Airways (BA), BAA and air traffic control company NATS trialled a more environmentally friendly style of operating this weekend.
Flight BA 1462 to Edinburgh on Saturday was the UK's "first perfect flight", according to the three aviation companies, as it produced a minimal amount of CO2.
The changes to the operation of the flight meant up to a quarter of a tonne of fuel was saved, equating to nearly one tonne of CO2.
The achievement was a "one-off", a NATS spokeswoman told ABTN. "We picked the day and time where it would be possible. It's not something you could do in the rush hour on a Monday morning."
Steps taken included changes to the way the plane was flown, and minimal delays at ground level.
"When the aircraft taxied out to the runway it went straight onto the runway, rather than holding at the end," explained the NATS spokeswoman.
After departure, it went up in a continuous climb to its cruising level. This is normally not possible, as planes need to negotiate other traffic in the sky so climb in steps.
"Then, in the route up the country, rather than following the standard route structure, where we have traffic flows, it was outside that, so it went on a very direct line," said NATS. It was also able to fly at its most fuel-efficient altitude for longer than usual.
"When it got to 10 miles away from the destination it was able to do a continuous descent, rather than stopping at different levels."
Dean Plumb, BA strategy and environment manager, said the experiment highlights what can be achieved if every part of a flight is optimised: "The data obtained should show that what seemed to be a normal, scheduled flight actually achieved something extraordinary."
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