Keeping Airplanes Up And Carbon Output Down

It seems far-fetched, almost inconceivable that a simple shrub, jatropha curcas , and plain algae, could offer a viable alternative to oil - that black gold on which we have become so reliant. But within the next few years this could become a reality for the air transport sector. Faced with volatile energy markets and the urgent need to cut greenhouse gas emissions, the airline industry is fully engaged in the search for viable fuel alternatives which, it is widely believed, will come on stream within 3 to 5 years for jatropha-based fuels and within 10 years for algal-based fuels.

Air transport offers an interesting example of an industry that is embracing technological and design innovation to secure an economically sustainable and carbon-free future.

A united approach

Air travel is central to the global trading system, responsible for transporting 35 percent of goods (by value) of international trade, and over 40 percent of international tourism traffic. A global employer, it directly generates 5.5 million jobs and contributes some US$408 billion to global GDP. Aviation currently accounts for approximately 13 percent of global transport emissions, equivalent to 2 percent of global carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) emissions.

Giovanni Bisignani, Director General of the International Air Transport Association (IATA), believes that "no other industry is as united in its approach" to reducing emissions. The industry has a "firm and strong" commitment to environmental responsibility and the IATA vision is to achieve carbon-neutral growth on the way to a carbon- free future by 2050. Aviation is the first global transportation sector to try to understand the environmental impact of its operations, commissioning in 1999 a special Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report on Aviation and Global Atmosphere.

Steps taken by the industry to mitigate its environmental impact have generated significant emissions reductions and translated into sizeable cost savings. Since 2004, the industry as a whole has saved some 59 million metric tonnes of CO 2 - equivalent to US$12.2 billion in fuel costs. In 2008 alone, 15 million tonnes of CO 2 were saved.

Progress in fuel efficiencies

Today's aircraft are 70 percent more fuel-efficient than in the 1970s.

Since the late 1990s aircraft operations (landing, routing, etc.) have become 20 percent more fuel-efficient and fuel efficiency is set to improve annually by 1.3 percent.

Hydrocarbon emissions have been cut by 90 percent and oxides of nitrogen have gone down by 50 percent.

Biofuel test flights

Access to fuel that is affordable, clean and efficient is an important element in reducing greenhouse gas emissions. The industry is actively steering efforts to identify and develop...