Airline leaders say 2050 net zero goal now unlikely
8 reported
The aviation industry’s goal to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2050 will probably not be met, according to airline leaders. Willie Walsh, director general of the global airlines body Iata, said “hope was fading fast” and a new “realistic timeline” should be established. Walsh blamed fuel suppliers, governments, and aircraft manufacturers for the likely failure. He noted that more than half of planned decarbonisation depends on sustainable aviation fuels (SAF), with much of the rest reliant on a UN-backed emissions trading programme called Corsia. Walsh said annual SAF production will reach only 2.4 million tonnes, or 0.8% of airline fuel needs, this year, far short of the 65% or 500 million tonnes needed by 2050. He added that there is “no path” to meet a 5% emission reduction target by 2030 using SAF. Iata’s sustainability vice-president Marie Owens Thomsen called UK and EU e-SAF targets for 2030 “beyond unrealistic” and “utterly detached from reality.”
What’s reported
The aviation industry’s net zero by 2050 pledge was declared in 2021, with similar pledges by national leaders and governments in 2020.
Willie Walsh, Iata director general, said “hope was fading fast” and a new “realistic timeline” should be established.
Walsh blamed fuel suppliers, governments, and aircraft manufacturers for the likely failure.
More than half of planned decarbonisation depends on SAF; much of the rest relies on the Corsia emissions trading programme.
Annual SAF production will reach 2.4 million tonnes (0.8% of airline fuel needs) this year, versus a goal of 500 million tonnes (65%) by 2050.
Walsh said there is “no path” to meet a 5% emission reduction by 2030 using SAF.
Walsh stated airlines are “continuing to do everything we said we would do, but we can’t achieve net zero in 2050 on our own.”
Iata’s Marie Owens Thomsen called UK and EU e-SAF targets for 2030 “beyond unrealistic” and “utterly detached from reality.”
Key figures
Willie Walsh, director general of Iata (global airlines body), former CEO of British Airways owner IAG.
Marie Owens Thomsen, Iata sustainability vice-president and chief economist.
Sources: The Guardian
