It plans to add another 250 units in the coming weeks, as part of a sustainability program that will save on fuel and reduce the airline’s carbon footprint. Eventually, Virgin Atlantic Cargo plans to replace all 3,200 of its LD3 units. The first phase of the plan for acquiring composite containers will reduce carbon-dioxide emissions by 565 tons in 2014, the airline said. It has been operating the lightweight containers in trials over the past several months. The first delivery involved the replacement of 25 percent of its LD3s with composite containers, which are 16 kilos per unit lighter. The equipment is being acquired from Nordisk and Advanced Composite Structures. Virgin Atlantic Cargo has set a target of reducing aircraft CO2 emissions by 30 percent by 2020.

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