Press about Aviation growth and global warming

GUARDIAN

June, 6th, 2007

"Here is the good news. Airlines and airports can cut aircraft emission levels by more than 6% a year for the next 10 years. How? Consultants working for independent Anglo-German company PMi-Media report..." More...

AINonline: Air Transport Making Progress, Says New Report

2007-06-06

The air transport industry may be doing more to reduce its carbon footprint than it is given credit for, according to a new report by independent consultants PMi-Media Ltd. The authors of Aviation growth and global warming have said that aviation is achieving annual savings of just 4 percent in terms of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, and it could save another two percent per year in the near term if the industry makes greater use of fuel-saving technology such as winglets and ground power units at airports.

"The UN's international panel on climate change and other studies which examine the forecast rise in aviation emissions generally accept that the industry will be able to make annual efficiency savings of between one and two percent," said co-author Rainer Vogel. "But these reports, based largely on aircraft data of a few years ago, do not take full account of the growth in information technology networks in which aircraft now fly."

The PMi-Media report details ways in which aircraft can now fly dynamic routes to optimize fuel efficiency and match their performance to prevailing weather data, unlike the current fixed airways. The advances in IT will also result in more precise flight briefings (so air crews do not carry unnecessary fuel), better ATM flow control and more efficient approaches to airports, as well as improved maintenance, repair and overhaul techniques.

Along with co-author Philip Butterworth-Hayes, Vogel has taken a holistic view at all the measures and prospective measures available to aviation as it seeks to play its part in arresting global warming. The broad conclusion is that it can achieve much more even before politically driven measures such as emissions trading are taken into account.

By Didier Daoust - full article