AIR TRANSPORT OF THE FUTURE: CARBON-EFFICIENT AND AFFORDABLE FOR FAMILIES

When you travel, you leave a carbon footprint. In pre-coronavirus times, air travel was responsible for about three percent of global CO2 emissions. This gives rise to a responsibility that we take seriously as an industry. The aim is to reduce the impact on the climate as far as possible. Our approach: to minimise specific CO2 emissions today through new and lower-emission aircraft, to offer climate-neutral flights in a few years' time by continuously increasing sustainably produced aviation fuels, and to continue to make affordable holiday possible.

Politics and the aviation industry have been working together for years to reduce the climate impact of air traffic. For example, European aviation has been included in EU emissions trading alongside the energy industry and energy-intensive industries since 2012. Emissions trading ensures that the aforementioned economic sectors reduce their CO2 emissions by 43% by 2030 compared with 2005 levels. In global air traffic, on the other hand, the CO2 compensation and reduction instrument CORSIA (Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation) of the UN aviation organisation ICAO takes effect. Airlines have to pay for growth-related emissions. The funds then flow into ICAO-certified climate protection projects.

COMPOSITION OF GLOBAL CO2 EMISSIONS

Air transport accounts for around three percent of global CO2 emissions. Despite a significant increase in passenger numbers, the share has been stagnating for years, thanks to significant efficiency gains and technological leaps.

OUR APPROACH: REDUCING EMISSIONS IN A SCIENCE-BASED AND TRANSPARENT WAY

We are convinced: these international regulatory frameworks do not exempt companies from reducing emissions on their own. That is why the TUI Group submitted detailed CO2 reduction plans to the NGO Science Based Targets Initiative (SBTi) - a cooperation between the United Nations Global Compact, the World Resources Institute (WRI) and the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) - in August 2022, particularly for our airlines. The goal is to significantly reduce emissions by 2030 and achieve the Group-wide net zero target by 2050 at the latest.

EXPAND PIONEERING ROLE

TUI Airlines and TUIfly are thus among the first airlines to be scientifically audited. This underlines once again the pioneering role we play: In the Airline Index of the most climate-efficient airlines - published by the independent NGO atmosfair - TUIfly and TUI Airlines always land far in front. In the latest evaluation of 2018, they were ranked first and fourth among the 125 airlines surveyed. A key success factor here is our continuous investment in the latest and most fuel-efficient aircraft - we have also continued this strategy under Corona conditions.

OUR AIRLINES

We are doing everything we can to reduce our emissions while ensuring that flying on holiday remains affordable for families. The challenge of climate protection will not be met mainly with renunciation, rather, research and innovation are the key to climate-neutral travel in the future. The best example are sustainable aviation fuels (SAF), which are currently produced from biogenic residues and directly reduce CO2 emissions. We are driving this key issue forward. For example, our long-standing partner, the Spanish energy company Cespa, will also supply us with SAF in the future. Corresponding cooperations increase the availability of sustainable, non-fossil fuels - an important step toward CO2-neutral flying.

RAISING FURTHER POTENTIAL FOR MORE SUSTAINABLE AIR TRAVEL

Policymakers can further improve the framework conditions for more CO2-efficient flying:

  • Promote renewable fuels: Electricity-based aviation fuels play a key role in decarbonising air transport. This urgently requires the market ramp-up of power-to-liquid kerosene from renewable sources. The PtL roadmap drawn up jointly by policymakers and industry must now be implemented consistently.
  • Modernise air traffic control: Air traffic control can reduce emissions with climate-optimised routing. To achieve this, it must be further automated and harmonised internationally.
  • Make "Fit for 55" competition-neutral: The Fit for 55 package is currently being negotiated in Brussels. Its components include a tightening of EU emissions trading and a mandatory blending of sustainable aviation fuels. TUI expressly supports approaches to decarbonise air transport.  Policymakers can provide incentives to voluntarily increase the mandatory SAF blending by issuing free emissions certificates in return.