JetSMART will reduce 2% fuel consumption per flight with Digital Winglets, equivalent to planting 750,000 trees in 2025

• JetSMART has implemented Digital Winglets, an artificial intelligence technology that uses real-time data to generate flight-specific recommendations, enhancing operational efficiency, reducing costs, and achieving sustainability goals.

• The airline is the first in Latin America to adopt this technology, developed in collaboration with NASA and licensed by APiJET.

• 750.000 trees are equivalent to planting a forest the size of 14.000 soccer fields. If the aviation industry were to adopt similar technologies, the environmental impact would be equivalent to planting 870 million trees, covering an area the size of France.

Seattle, WA, January 28th, 2025.- During the International Day for the Reduction of CO2 Emissions, the South American Ultra Low-Cost Carrier, JetSMART, and aviation software technology firm, APiJET, announced the first commercial implementation of Digital Winglets in Latin America.

Digital Winglets is a flight path optimization (FPO) solution that builds on Traffic Aware Strategic Aircrew Requests (TASAR), a technology developed by NASA and licensed by APiJET, along with proprietary algorithms, mapping technologies, and live state data. It enables JetSMART to make informed, route-specific flight optimization decisions to save fuel, improve flight punctuality, and reduce carbon emissions, achieving higher efficiency and productivity ratios.

“Digital Winglets is configured to analyze the unique characteristics of each customer’s aircraft in real-world flight conditions to generate recommendations for individual flight routing. By utilizing these recommendations, JetSMART can opt for Air Traffic Control approval for alternative routes, be it vertical, lateral, or a combination of the two” said Rob Green, APiJET’s CEO.

“At JetSMART, we are at the forefront of global aviation technology innovation, constantly striving for maximum efficiency and minimal carbon footprint. Innovation is a fundamental part of our SMART model, and I am very proud to be pioneers in using Digital Winglets. This technology will reduce fuel consumption and emissions through artificial intelligence, allowing us to continue our mission with APiJET of offering the lowest fares to our customers by being the most efficient airline”, said Estuardo Ortiz, CEO of JetSMART.

“The technical depth and agility of the JetSMART team is a testament to the airline’s innovation culture. We believe Flight Path Optimization with Digital Winglets is only the beginning of our collaboration with JetSMART” Mr. Green added.  

Digital Winglets testing started in the fall and is now deployed, generating real-time recommendations that JetSMART dispatchers and pilots evaluate for Air Traffic Control approval.