Abu Dhabi based UAEs national airline "Etihad Airways" is setting wonderful example for other airlines by following 3 Rs.

When Etihad Airways introduced a chic new outfit for its cabin crew in December, it was left with the dilemma of what to do with its old uniforms. They couldn't  have the odd chance that the old uniforms get picked/collected and someone puts on a captain's uniform. Many of the products his company deals with are either out of date, counterfeit, or pose a security issue. Police and cabin crew uniforms fall into this category. For environmental and security reasons, the clothing could not be dumped in landfill, so the UAE's national airline opted for recycling.

The company hired the services of EnviroServe, a Dubai-based company that offers secure disposal of waste.

Etihad and EnviroServe opted to send the uniforms to a factory in the Netherlands, which turned them into yarn. This was then transformed into carpets, which will be used to line the floors of Etihad's aircraft.

Three containers of old uniforms were sent to the Netherlands for recycling.

The airline had recycled more than four tonnes of old uniforms. These old uniforms were dethreaded and used to make carpets and other items at a facility in the Netherlands  .

Recycling uniforms is important from an environmental perspective as well as a security requirement.

Etihad followed the lead of Dutch airline KLM, which in 2010 had to deal with nine tonnes of old uniforms after a livery rebrand. KLM decided to turn the old uniforms into handbags with the help of an entrepreneur, Omar Munie, a recycling expert who works in the same field as the company that undertook the Etihad recycling project.

Aside from recycling uniforms, Etihad's cabin crew collect about 4,000 plastic bottles and 400 aluminium cans for recycling every day.

As part of their in-flight procedure, the crew separates glass, bottles and plastics in the air ready to recycle after the flight has touched down.

As part of staff  training , Etihad staff  are meant to do a lot of recycling on the plane. It's a part of their green philosophy in the air. Their packaging waste amounts to about 70 tonnes each month.This is bundled and sent for recycling, together with nearly 30 tonnes per month of in-flight newspapers and magazines .

About 25 tonnes of glass items, primarily bottles, are recovered for recycling every month from the Etihad fleet.

Etihad feels that it is important to get the entire company involved in the process, so cabin crew are advised that recycling starts with them.

As with its staff uniforms, Etihad Airways is also finding a use for its used airline blankets, rather than throwing them in landfill.

Once the blankets have been used a maximum of five times to keep passengers warm aboard worldwide flights, many of them are sent off to developing countries as charitable donations.

In the past, the airline's corporate social responsibility team has organised trips to countries such as Nepal, the Philippines and India, where it handed over large quantities of blankets to impoverished people.

Last week, the airline donated blankets and school supplies to two charities in Kenya – the Dream Children's Home, which supports about 100 orphans and vulnerable children and Children in Freedom, which provides free education and mentorship to more than 40 children in schools in Nairobi.

The mission, which was also supported by the National Bank of Abu Dhabi, had helped in alleviating the suffering of the poor and the vulnerable in Africa.

More than 700 blankets were handed over to the Dream Children's Home orphanage.

Not only did Etihad donate the blankets, nine members of its Airways' iVolunteer initiative flew to Kenya to provide their time and skills to support activities including painting part of the orphanage's interior.

Source : The National

My respect for Etihad airways and it's crew and all staff has grown multifold after knowing this.