EasyJet launched a zero emissions flights campaign last week with the aim of becoming the world's first airline to operate zero carbon flights. The airline announced it will offset all emissions coming from the fuel used on all its flights through a £25m plan (around €29m) that will be rolled out in the next financial year to plant trees or avoid the release of additional emissions. The action taken by the low-cost carrier is meant to be, according to its chief executive, an interim measure that will be continue until the evolution towards clean energy for aviation and electric planes will become reality.
Easyjet's campaign follows the recent pledges of other airlines, including British Airways and Lufthansa, that launched their offset projects due to the mounting pressure on the aviation industry to address its environmental impact. According to Sustainable Aviation, the global aviation industry produces around 2% of all human-induced CO2 emissions and is responsible for 12% of CO2 emissions from all transport sources, compared to 74% from road transport. In 2016 a first huge step was taken when the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) adopted the Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation (CORSIA) to address CO2 emissions from international aviation and stabilize net CO2 emissions from international civil aviation at 2020 levels.
The environmental concerns are also obviously felt by GSE fleets that are considering a series of different measures to tackle the emissions challenge, such as the adoption of non idling policies and the auditing of fuel and assets use. A few projects developed in the past by the European Commission, such as the AAS project, have worked to develop, implement and investigate the implications of high tech systems for comprehensive monitoring and controlling of all Ground Service Equipment ('GSE') vehicles and movements in apron areas and proved that decreasing vehicle movements and fuel consumption could significantly improve environmental sustainability.
GSE telematics systems help in reducing fuel consumption, monitoring the use of vehicles and establishing more efficient in-airport routes that allow to save time and decrease emissions. With the current emission targets accomplishment being essential for the aviation sector and the growing awareness of consumers that increasingly choose low-emission providers, there is no reason to delay moving to GSE fleet management solutions - talk to us if you want to learn more.
