THE STATE OF SUSTAINABLE AVIATION TECHNOLOGIES 2024
WHY AVIATION IS CONSIDERED HARD TO DECARBONISE Aviation faces a number of unique challenges in its decarbonisation journey. This is thanks to aircraft longevity and specific aviation fuel requirements.
This extended lifespan significantly impacts the industry's ability to implement greener technologies. The slow fleet turnover rate means efficiency and emissions reduction improvements take years to impact the global fleet substantially.
Aircraft in 2050 will likely resemble those flying today, owing to their two to three decades-long lifespan. This contrasts Moreover, the industry's commitment sharply with the automotive industry, where to current technologies complicates the vehicle turnover occurs every 10-15 years. transition to alternatives like hydrogen. Despite developing a hydrogen aircraft, Looking at Airbus, its December 2023 Airbus has indicated that the A320's backlog of 8,599 aircraft is expected successor will still rely on kerosene or – at to grow with upcoming air shows, which underscores this issue. These planes, slated best – sustainable aviation fuel. for delivery this decade, will largely remain operational until 2050 and beyond.
The good news? Change is possible. We believe change is possible – the current revolution in renewables points the way. California, the world’s fifth-largest economy, achieved a significant milestone in spring 2024 by running entirely on renewable energy for extended periods. This demonstrated the potential of solar and wind power to meet the demands of a large population centre and economic hub. The key to this has been the fall in the prices of solar energy.
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