Murray On Travel

"To travel is to discover that everyone is wrong about other countries."

-Â Aldous Huxley

Los Angeles rush hour traffic.

Virgin America has partnered with Carbonfund.org to allow passengers to purchase Carbon offset credits using their in-flight entertainment system. Travelers can also purchase these credits online from the Virgin America ticketing confirmation web page.

This is part of a continuing effort to implement environmental sustainability practices. Carbonfund.org is the nation's leading nonprofit carbon offset provider, allowing travelers to help offset the environmental impact of their flight. Virgin's sustainability statement can be found here: http://www.virginamerica.com/va/html/sustainability.pdf

The airline and Carbonfund.org have selected offset projects that focus on emissions reductions, renewable energy and energy efficiency. The operation of all the supported projects are independently verified.

Virgin America was launched last year with the goal of building an airline from the ground up that makes environmentally sustainable practices an important part of its business model. They operate a fleet of aircraft that is up to 30% more carbon and fuel than the average US airline.

The airline employs aggressive steps to reduce its carbon footprint, such as single engine taxiing, and regulating cruising speeds to reduce fuel burn.