1 ALOFTAN INFLIGHT REVIEW WE ALL FLY. MORE AND MORE. MAKING GLOBAL AIR TRAFFIC SUSTAINABLE IS A SHARED RESPONSIBILITY. 2 LOREM IPSUM DOLOR IMPRINT ALOFT AN INFLIGHT REVIEW is jointly published by the Heinrich Böll Foundation and the Airbus Group German edition: OBEN IHR FLUGBEGLEITER Managing editor, author (unless otherwise specied): Dietmar Bartz Art director: Ellen Stockmar Translator: Maureen Polaszek Proofreader: Maria Lanman Editorial responsibility (V.i.S.d.P): Annette Maennel, Heinrich Böll Foundation 1st edition, May 2016 For further inquiries please contact: Ute Brümmer, Heinrich Böll Foundation, Schumannstraße 8, 10117 Berlin, bruemmer boell.de Florian Keisinger, Airbus Group, Rahel-Hirsch-Straße 10, 10557 Berlin, orian.keisinger airbus.com Print: Druckerei Conrad GmbH, Berlin climate neutrally printed on 100% recycled paper Order and download address: Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung, Schumannstraße 8, 10117 Berlin, Germany, www.boell.de/aloft 2 ALOFT AN INFLIGHT REVIEW 3 EDITORIAL DEAR READERS! ir trac is a key component of our modern, globally Despite all the improvements in noise and emission protec- connected world. This applies to both our profes- tion that have been made in recent years, a great deal must be sional and our private lives. Aviation has created a done from a political and technical point of view. global neork connecting people and goods. It is An ongoing controversy is how to regulate the aviation in- A hard for anyone who wants to become familiar with the world dustry and what constraints are eective. At best, they should and participate in global exchange to refrain from flying. take place at an international level, establish a uniform com- We currently record about 3.3 billion air trips per year. petitive framework and encourage technological innovations. Within the next o decades, there are likely to be ice as The goal of an open dialogue beeen the Airbus Group and many. Air trac is growing rapidly, especially in Asia, the the Heinrich Böll Foundation in the past year was to explore Middle East and in other emerging economies. Correspond- the need for action with regard to aaining sustainable air ingly, the number of passenger aircraft will increase, and, trac. In the course of the discussions, it became clear that, in the next en­ years, it is expected to double to around in spite of sometimes diverging views, there was a basic con- 37,500 jets. sensus on where the journey should go. Until recently, flying was limited to a small number of peo- ple, mainly in the western part of the world. This has changed conomy and ecology are not necessarily at odds dramatically in recent years. Cheaper ticket prices and the when it comes to the issue of sustainable aviation. growth of a global middle class have led to a “democratiza- On the contrary: ecological and economic reasoning tion of flying.” Air travel has become a part of modern mass are closely interwoven and mutually dependent. De- culture. E spite the current moderate oil price, fuel is still the key cost Supporters of the Green Par­ travel by plane more fre- factor in the aviation sector. Airbus will only survive in global quently than others. This sheds light on the conflicts envi- competition when its aircraft can fly as eciently as possible. ronmentally conscious people are confronted with when it In this respect a great deal has been done in recent years. comes to the subject of flying. Mobili­ represents a taste of Nevertheless, even with common goals, there may be dif- freedom. The global interconnection of politics, economy, ferent views regarding the question of which road to take. science and culture are increasing. At the same time, the envi- This applies particularly to the design of the policy frame- ronmental impact of flying can no longer be ignored. work for air transport, taking economic eciency and com- petitiveness of the industry into consideration. Accordingly, his is particularly true with regard to climate change. our series of open discussions also focused on this issue. The Considerable eciency gains in fuel consumption exchange beeen aviation industry experts, green climate are oueighed by high growth rates in internation- politics and NGOs was definitely a worthwhile enterprise. al air trac. As a result, this leads to an increase in Although this publication does not provide final answers, T climate-relevant emissions. We need a turnaround for avia- it does provide important insights into the current state of tion to contribute to climate protection. Air trac needs to technological developments and the political debate sur- become more environmentally friendly and more sustainable. rounding the sustainable future of flying, and it can serve as a This applies to engine technology, the fuels used, the air- basis for further dialogue in the coming years. craft design and the materials utilized, as well as to air trac management and airport operations. It will take a few more decades before the vision of carbon-neutral flying becomes a reali­. But on the way there, we will have to succeed in con- siderably reducing carbon emissions in aviation. RALF FÜCKS TOM ENDERS With the introduction of new jets, such as the A350 or President CEO the A320neo, the eco-audit of modern aircraft fleets will be Heinrich Böll Foundation Airbus Group improved by about 20 per cent. Nevertheless, reducing ker- osene consumption must and will have to continue in the future. This will be especially true when taxes are levied on future CO2 emissions in global air trac. The same applies to noise. Quieter aircraft are needed to achieve the optimal use of takeo and landing times in densely populated areas. At the same time, environmental issues are becoming increasingly important for public acceptance of air trac. ALOFT AN INFLIGHT REVIEW 03 4 BASIC TENET DEPARTURE Air trac is increasing, and with it the emission of greenhouse gases. In 2008, airlines, aircraft manufacturers and airports signed a voluntary commitment for the aviation industry From 2020, the industry wants to achieve CARBONNEUTRAL GROWTH. By 2050, it wants to REDUCE CARBON EMISSIONS by 75 per cent, compared to 2005. Further goals are a 90 per cent decrease in NITROGEN OXIDE EMISSIONS and a 65 per cent decrease in NOISE EMISSIONS. No other industry sector has formulated such far-reaching global climate targets. How can they be achieved? What innovations and political conditions are necessary? Let’s takeo. 04 ALOFT AN INFLIGHT REVIEW 5 CONTENTS ALOFT AN INFLIGHT REVIEW ENVIRONMENT INTERVIEW AIR TRAVEL VERSUS … Experts in Germany and HOMEWORK FOR POLITICS AND INDUSTRY the EU are ascertaining the environmental ranking of Ralf Fücks, President, Heinrich Böll Foundation, vs. dierent transport modes ////////////////////////// 06 Tom Enders, CEO, Airbus Group. /////////////////// 32 FUEL DATA GOING GREEN AT AIRBUS Kerosene made from MAJOR TRENDS //////////////////////////////// 35 algae oil to make jet fuel sustainable //////////////// 08 CLIMATE POLICY INQUIRY NEGOTIATION MATTERS The EU wanted to exert THE GREENS FLY THE MOST BUT WITH international pressure to speed up the reduction of A GUILTY CONSCIENCE //////////////////////// 14 carbon emissions in air trac. However, it failed because its climate policy met with existing conflicts of CONSTRUCTION interest /////////////////////////////////////////// 38 TECHNOLOGY OF THE FUTURE In the coming decades, new aircraft engines and production methods AIRSPACE could make flying more sustainable. “Hybrid flying” CELESTIAL DETOURS The “Single European Sky” using electrical energy has already begun and could replace the cumbersome and expensive European 3D printing promises higher eciency and a cleaner aviation trac system that causes serious environmental production process //////////////////////////////// 16 harm. But a broad alliance opposes the uniform organization of airspace //////////////////////////// 40 HISTORY THE ANCESTORS OF AIRBUS ////////////////// 20 POINTS OF VIEW CONCEPTS, PLANS, MATTERS OF OPINION PROCEEDINGS In Germany, eight non-governmental organizations THREE PANELS, FIFTY EXPERTS. THEIR TASK: and the German Aviation Association argue over the HIGHLIGHTING OPTIONS TO DECARBONISE upcoming Federal air trac conception ///////////// 42 AIR TRAFFIC The Heinrich Böll Foundation and the Airbus Group discussed the future of flying. In the CONTROVERSY end, the participants agreed on a catalogue of AIRCRAFT NOISE PROS & CONS Mona Neubaur, commonalities and dierences ///////////////////// 22 anti-aircraft noise activist, vs. Charles Champion, Executive Vice President Engineering, Airbus //////// 45 STEPS BIT BY BIT “Incremental” innovations continuously EVERYDAY LIFE improve aircraft. The process is of strategic significance, “HAVE A PLEASANT FLIGHT!” Hamburg but that alone is not enough //////////////////////// 28 cartoonist, Til Mee, on the shortcomings and absurdities of flying ////////////////////////////////////////// 46 LEAPS FASTER AND FASTER Until now Silicon Valley has SYNOPSIS not been a major player in the process of redesigning HIGHFLYING AND NOSEDIVING The history of the civil aircraft. However, this is about to change /////// 30 Greens and Airbus – a short journey through time //// 48 IMPRINT ///////////////////////////////////////// 02 SOURCES ///////////////////////////////////////// 51 ALOFT AN INFLIGHT REVIEW 05 6 AIR TRAVEL VERSUS … Experts in Germany and the EU are The situation is paradoxical: the air trac ascertaining the environmental ranking boom makes the individual journeys more en- vironmentally friendly. Not only technical