Climate Change

Responsibly Addressing Climate Change

Aviation is responsible for:

• 669 million tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions (2011) – compared to 34 billion tonnes of CO2 from human activities globally
• 2% of global CO2 emissions
• 12% of CO2 emissions from all transport sources, compared to 74% from road transport
• 3% of the total man-made contribution to climate change

Our industry has a vision to achieve carbon neutral growth on the way to a carbon free industry. The strategy for this is based on four pillars: technological progress, operational measures, infrastructure improvements and economic instruments. 

• Global Approach to Reducing Aviation Emissions (pdf)
• Pathway to Carbon-Neutral Growth in 2020 (pdf)

Technological advancements, operational measures, infrastructure and air traffic management enhancements can all contribute to reduce aviation’s fuel use and related  emissions. 

Fuel efficiency improvements enable airlines to reduce emissions as well as operating costs. Since the start of the jet age, aviation has reduced fuel burn, CO2 and water vapour emissions by some 70% per passenger km. Fuel efficiency improved by 16% between 2001 and 2011. An additional efficiency gain of 17% is expected between by 2020. IATA's fuel action campaign assists its member airlines in saving fuel.

Further, net reductions in aviation’s emissions will be achieved through the deployment of sustainable biofuels. The aviation industry is focusing on advanced biofuels which can replace traditional jet fuel, while not competing with valuable food, land and water resources.

Airlines are however not the only ones who can contribute to reducing air transport’s carbon footprint. In particular, support for optimized air traffic management is critical. It is estimated that up to 8% of all jet fuel is wasted as a result of inefficient routes that aircraft have to fly.