Alaska Airlines tests 'greener' landing at Sea-Tac

Alaska Airlines says it's flown another test flight of landing procedures at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport that can save fuel, reduce noise and cut emissions.

A landing consumes 4 percent of the fuel used in a typical 2-hour flight, and the techniques tested can reduce that by one-third, said spokeswoman Bobbie Egan.

The procedures, already used in Alaska and at several Lower 48 airports, use satellite technology to guide a plane to a landing. That permits the aircraft to fly a shorter, more direct and slower approach.

Alaska Airlines is working with the Port of Seattle, Boeing and other airlines to get Federal Aviation Administration approval to use the techniques at Sea-Tac. If so, Alaska Airlines estimates that more than 2 million gallons of fuel could be saved each year. The project began last summer, and this week's test involved a 737 jetliner making eight approaches to the airport.

Information in this article, originally published July 23, was corrected July 23. A previous version of this article said the landing procedures being tested can can save fuel, reduce noise and cut emissions by a third. The one third reduction applies only to fuel consumed during the approach and landing, not the entire flight.