Sobering report

Climate-friendly flying: no quick solution

(Bild: © Holger Harfst)

Despite the climate crisis, the number of flights - and therefore the amount of CO₂ emissions - is increasing worldwide. Now German experts have come up with a sobering report: No single technology can be decisive for more climate-friendly aviation and no currently possible strategy is sufficient in itself to achieve the emissions targets.

"By 2050, 60 percent more CO₂ emissions could be produced than in 2019," says the report by the Office of Technology Assessment at the German Bundestag. According to the report, the number of passengers transported in Germany rose from around 136 million in 2004 to around 227 million in 2019. The TAB was commissioned to investigate innovative propulsion systems for more climate-friendly air traffic. 

A mix of technologies is needed. According to the TAB, this includes electric drives, more sustainable fuels from waste or biomass, green hydrogen (H2), the optimization of fuels, a more sustainable aircraft design and a reduction in emissions through increased efficiency. 

No quick solutions to be expected
Quick solutions cannot be expected for either propulsion systems or new fuels, as the aviation sector has long development and approval periods. Another problem is that, due to the close global networking of air traffic, a uniform energy supply must be guaranteed at all airports, the TAB report continues. Parallel infrastructures would entail additional costs. "This is another reason why a switch to a fundamentally different energy supply is not to be expected in the medium term," the experts write.

The climate impact of air traffic is considerable. According to estimates, international aviation accounts for around 3.5 to five percent of man-made global warming, as the TAB report states.