Aviation Is as Sustainable Now as It Will Be in Your Lifetime

Aviation Is as Sustainable Now as It Will Be in Your Lifetime

Could the world be on the brink of a new, cleaner era of aviation? That’s certainly what you might think from the way some people are talking.

Mandates for blending so-called Sustainable Aviation Fuel into jet kerosene form one plank of the European Union’s recently announced plans to reduce emissions 55% by 2030. The technology will be key to airlines’ ambitions to get to net zero by mid-century, according to a study by the World Economic Forum. Airbus SE has released dazzling concept designs for three zero-emission aircraft, and plans to devote five years to studying the idea before deciding whether to spend money developing a commercial version.

The feeling of progress toward eliminating air travel’s carbon footprint is no doubt valuable to the sorts of affluent, globally aware customers on whom the industry depends. There’s a reason airlines were some of the earliest and most important sellers of carbon offsets to consumers — though the environmental benefits from such products are often patchy at best.

Unfortunately, the truth is that mitigating emissions from aircraft is one of the most challenging areas the world will face over the coming decades. In power generation, road transport, steel, chemicals and shipping, there are genuine breakthrough