March 19, 2008 - Virgin CEO Richard Branson has hit back at criticism - most recently from British Airways CEO Willie Walsh - that his airline's recent biofuels test flight was a publicity stunt that offers little real-world value for the aviation industry. In an editorial for The Guardian, Branson responds directly to Walsh, charging that if the BA boss "had his way the industry would go backwards."

Branson's principle argument is that something is better than nothing. While it is "neither easy nor cheap to develop cleaner fuels," he says, other high-profile companies are also exploring the options:

"As our recent demonstration flight using alternative fuel proved, we are not alone. Leading industry players such as Boeing, GE, Rolls Royce, Continental, and Air New Zealand share our vision for finding solutions. It is a pity that an increasingly isolated BA doesn't....For Walsh to say 'I recognize ... that we don't have an alternative to kerosene and carbon-based fuels at this point' is very short-sighted. There are alternatives emerging which need to be tested."

Branson points out, for example, that his recent test flight proved wrong the theory that biofuels freeze at altitudes above 15,000 feet.

Concluding that "sniping from the sidelines is not the answer to climate change," Branson pledges that his company will continue to take innovative action, and urges others to do the same.

Branson's visionary rhetoric is characteristic. In February he offered to set up a "climate change war room" dedicated to finding solutions to global warming.