Research

This brief explores UK airline easyJet’s plans and examines the challenge that remains for the airline industry to survive and thrive in a world increasingly focused on avoiding severe climate outcomes above the widely-discussed 2-degree warming threshold.

• A report by the UN’s International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) says airlines may represent ~25% of global carbon by 2050, as air trips rise and carbon permitted falls
• London School of Economics TPI report sees easyJet as an industry leader in emissions; Truvalue timely data shows outperformance as well
• Airline industry targets for emissions reductions use a proxy of zero emissions for biofuels; as the Union of Concerned Scientists point out, much of today’s biofuels do generate carbon due to land use, production processes, and farming fuel use
• Airlines like easyJet pursuing strategies beyond a reliance on biofuel maturation reduce their long-term risk relative to peers