Japan Airlines (JAL) will participate in a project launched by San Francisco International Airport to reduce carbon dioxide emissions from airplanes by cutting waiting times before landing, JAL officials said on April 9.

JAL will join the project from April 10 to gather data on cuts in CO2 emissions and fuel costs, safety and other matters. JAL will later submit the data to Japan's Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, hoping to pave the way for introducing the new landing method to airports in Japan, they said.

The new landing system is designed to pinpoint accurate locations of aircraft through close cooperation between air traffic controllers at the San Francisco airport and those who are monitoring airspace over the sea.

With the system, air traffic controllers at the airport can advise incoming airplanes on which routes to take 90 minutes before their scheduled landing time, enabling them to calculate their most fuel-efficient flight altitude and speed, and reduce the time spent circling the airport before landing.