21
August
2019
|
10:37
Europe/Amsterdam

National aviation conference in Leipzig: Lufthansa with broad commitment to climate protection

Summary
  • Air traffic central to economy and society
  • Spohr: globally networked economy unthinkable without aviation

On the occasion of Germany’s national aviation conference in Leipzig today, Carsten Spohr, CEO of Deutsche Lufthansa AG, emphasizes the importance of air traffic: “We make a significant contribution to Germany’s export strength. In terms of value, almost one third of international freight is transported by air. Development aid or supplying medication all around the world would be no more possible without aviation than tourism, which provides economic stability in many regions. This is also something to keep in mind as we do everything we can in order make flying as climate-friendly as possible in future.” 

Sustainability has been a central guiding principle of Lufthansa for many years. This year, the company is once again significantly increasing its commitment to climate protection. The most important measure: fleet renewal. Because in the short term, the greatest leverage lies in economical aircraft that emit up to one quarter less COthan their predecessors. 

The continuous modernization of the fleet is paying off: on average, the airlines of Lufthansa Group only needed 3.65 liters of kerosene to fly a passenger 100 kilometers in 2018 – compared to 1990, this is an improvement of around 41 percent. And the new aircraft will decrease COemissions even more, by about 1.5 million metric tons per year. 

In addition to many other initiatives, the company supports the research and development of alternative fuels through its involvement in specific projects in Brandenburg and Schleswig-Holstein. Synthetic kerosene is a realistic option for carbon-neutral flying in the future.

“We need a strong, joint commitment of industry and politics to promote sustainable fuels,” says Carsten Spohr, adding that by creating financing cycles in aviation, politicians can make an effective contribution to climate protection. “It would make sense to invest the roughly 1.2 billion euros in federal aviation tax revenue into the market development of carbon-neutral fuels or other measures to make air traffic more climate-friendly.”

A further lever for major COreductions would be to modernize the nationally organized European air traffic control. Because passenger aircraft have to take detours in Europe, they use up to 10 percent more kerosene. “The implementation of a Single European Sky would be a real climate protection measure,” says Carsten Spohr.

Panel discussion with German Federal Transport Minister Scheuer

Carsten Spohr will be speaking at the national aviation conference in Leipzig this afternoon. In a panel with German Federal Transport Minister Andreas Scheuer, he will be discussing the topic “Aviation in the 21stcentury – smart digital and eco-efficient”.