New figures from UK aviation consultancy IBA show that CO2 emissions in the commercial sector averaged 143.7 grams per seat mile last month.
These numbers represent an all-time low for emissions in aviation since January 2018, before the pandemic and since the survey began.
The decline was smaller compared to the first half of 2021, due to reduced operations of new-generation aircraft in January 2022. And also because a slight increase in the utilization of units that contribute the most to emissions, including Boeing 737-800s, 777-300ERs, and Airbus A320-200s.
As the recovery of the aviation market continues to take hold, IBA expects operators to continue to reactivate their fleets as capacity needs increase.
As reported by our partner site Aeroin, the overall CO2 emissions figure is likely to increase slightly, before balancing out over the next 2 to 3 years as demand returns to normal numbers and continues its course of stabilization.
C02 per seat per mile
Since the pandemic began, there has been a marked downward trend in operations in December 2020 and 2021, due to increased virus transmission, new variants, domestic and international border blockades, and travel restrictions that generated a decline in flights earlier in the year.
Most current-generation narrowbody aircraft had a -3% to -7% reduction in usage by early 2022, while newer aircraft, such as the 737 MAX and Airbus A321neo had a -15% and -11% reduction, respectively.
Ian Beaumont, CEO of IBA, said, «IBA’s carbon emissions calculator is the most advanced and accurate emissions monitoring tool on the market, with a unique ability to model airline and lessor fleet scenarios and project future emissions. We are committed to using our expertise to support the industry in its drive to achieve the goal of zero emissions by 2050.»
Kieran O’Brien, a partner at KPMG Ireland, explained: «We agree that the aviation recovery starts to pick up in 2022; operators will continue to reactivate their idle fleets but will focus more on environmental aspects and carbon emissions. This can be seen with the launch of Aircraft Leasing Ireland’s ESG narrative ‘Aviation Sustainability: Our future’. It outlines tangible steps aircraft lessors should take to support aviation towards achieving net carbon emissions by 2050, which we are pleased to support.»
IBA has over 30 years of experience in providing independent business intelligence and analysis, being an expert in the aviation sector. Founded in 1988, it offers a significant range of services, including InsightIQ, an intelligence platform that combines speed, visual analysis, and intuitive navigation.
IBA advises investment funds and banks, aircraft leasing companies, operators, manufacturers, and MROs. In March 2021, it was named Airline Economics’ ‘Advisor of the Year’ for the fourth time.
