Europe's aviation sector launched (11-Feb-2021) 'Destination 2050', a new initiative detailing a route to reaching net zero European aviation emissions by 2050. Building on the Paris Agreement and the European Green Deal, Destination 2050 sees all air traffic within and departing the EU, UK and the EFTA realising net zero CO2 emissions by 2050. The sector calls for decisive action from both governments and industry to achieve this net zero vision by 2050, while upholding international competitiveness and aviation's benefits to society. The plan highlights opportunities to reach the goal through a combination of four key measures, aligning the European aviation sector with EU climate goals, as follows:
- Improvements in aircraft and engine technologies that could achieve emission reductions of 37%;
- Using sustainable aviation fuels (SAFs) that could achieve emission reductions of 34%;
- Advancements in hydrogen power technology that could achieve emissions reductions of 20%;
- Implementing economic measures to achieve emission reductions of 8%;
- Improvements in ATM and aircraft operations targeting emission reductions of 6%.
The Destination 2050 report further assumes an impact on demand due to the above measures, resulting in the net zero CO2 goal. European air passenger numbers remain projected to grow on average by approximately 1.4% p/a between 2018 and 2050 without compromising the sector's ability to reach net zero CO2 emissions by this point. [more - original PR] [more - original PR - II]