- A lack of government support for aviation is evident, and greater investment is required.
- The UK’s push to get countries to join the ‘International Aviation Climate Ambition Coalition’ announced at COP26 is not enough.
- SAF will be a good stopgap for aviation to reduce emissions while long-term power options are considered.
Airlines and the wider aviation industry will struggle to meet ambitious carbon neutral targets alone. Governments must act by providing significant investment following COP26 to ensure meaningful action occurs.
COP26 has put pressure on the aviation industry to reaffirm its commitment to reducing its environmental impact. A recent found that 45% of global respondents stated that the environment was the most important of the Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) factors with respect to materiality.
With environmental concerns becoming so important to consumers, the industry must act. Although many schemes, working groups, and announcements have been declared leading up to the COP26 conference, it will not be enough alone to reduce the industry’s emissions and create a meaningful change. A lack of government support for aviation is evident, and investment is required.
Governments have supported other sectors’ quest to become more environmentally friendly. For instance, vehicle manufacturers have received widespread support and incentives to switch to electric vehicle production, but the aviation industry has not received the same attention or investment.
Governments worldwide are pressing for larger carbon reduction targets. However, a lack of concrete plans as to how these will be achieved or the funding available is evident. The UK’s push to get countries to join the ‘International Aviation Climate Ambition Coalition’ announced at COP26 is not enough.
