Regulator Eyes Mandate for Airlines to Display Flight Environmental Impact

An easyJet aeroplane comes in for landing at Gatwick Airport in London on March 27, 2022. (Hollie Adams/Getty Images)

The aviation regulator plans to force airlines to provide environmental information for every flight to passengers.

On Tuesday, the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) said it wants to enable consumers to “make more informed choices” and find out the net zero impact of flights from and within the UK.

The CAA regulates and oversees aviation safety, security, and consumer protection in the UK.

Launching the proposal, the CAA said it wants metrics to be reported to consumers using standard units, such as kg CO2 or kg CO2e per passenger journey.

Sustainability

The regulator said that the “environmental information consumers receive should be accurate, understandable, and accessible” via booking sites.

If given the go-ahead, the policy could come into force from early next year.

Tim Johnson, director of policy at the UK Civil Aviation Authority, said:  "Providing consumers with accessible, transparent, and accurate environmental information is essential to making more informed travel choices.

“Our new proposals aim to standardise this information across all platforms, enabling passengers to more easily compare the environmental impact of their flights.

“This initiative is a significant step towards greater transparency and improved sustainability in the aviation industry.”

The plans are in line with the CAA’s net zero plans to be “ambitious” in the way it prioritises sustainability and supports the government’s “Jet Zero Strategy” aim to decarbonise aviation with the sector.

SAFs

The UK has committed to scaling up manufacturing of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) and make domestic flying “net zero.”

On Monday, the Labour government said that the UK will introduce a SAF mandate to start from Jan 1, 2025, one of the first countries in the world to legislate in this way.

The SAF mandate will start in 2025 at 2 percent of total UK jet fuel demand, increase on a linear basis to 10 percent in 2030 and then to 22 percent in 2040. From 2040, the obligation will remain at 22 percent until there is greater certainty regarding SAF supply.

Last year a report from the Royal Society warned there is no single, clear alternative to jet fuel able to support flying on a scale equivalent to present-day use.

Scientists found that energy crops such as rapeseed, miscanthus, and poplar wood would require more than 50 percent of the UK’s available agricultural land in order to replace aviation fuels.

The report said that producing sufficient green hydrogen fuel would require 2.4 to 3.4 times the UK’s 2020 renewable electricity generation, meaning wind and solar.

Earlier this year a Virgin Atlantic spokesperson confirmed to The Epoch Times that it had calculated ticket prices would have to rise 6 percent as a result of SAF regulations.