Aerospace Industry to ICAO: Let’s Work Together to Deliver Global Aviation Emissions Framework
On the occasion of the 37th Assembly of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), the International Coordinating Council of Aerospace Industries Associations (ICCAIA) has urged governments to agree on a global approach to address aviation CO2 emissions. The aerospace manufacturing industry has also called on governments to support research and technology in the sector, in order to give it the means to achieve its ambitious environmental objectives.
‘Aviation is a long life cycle industry, which needs to operate in a stable regulatory environment. It is also a global industry, which requires a global approach. Any plan to reduce aviation CO2 emissions therefore needs to be based on a stable, long-term framework, implemented through a global approach’, said François Gayet, Chairman of ICCAIA and Secretary-General of ASD, the association representing the European aerospace industry.
‘We believe ICAO is the right forum to set up such a framework and implement such an approach. A couple of months before the opening of the UNFCCC Conference of the Parties in Cancun, the ICAO Assembly must rise to the challenge and adopt a global plan for addressing aviation emissions’, said Mr Gayet.
The aviation industry as a whole (ICCAIA for manufacturers, ACI for airports, IATA for airlines, and CANSO for air navigation service providers) has set itself ambitious environmental targets: in addition to a commitment to improve its average efficiency by 1.5 percent per year up to 2020, it intends to cap its net carbon emissions from 2020 onwards, and to halve them by 2050 – compared to 2005 levels. ‘Industry and ICAO Member States need to work hand-in-hand to ensure that such targets can be achieved’, Mr Gayet insisted.
Technological innovation will play a crucial role in contributing to the reduction of aviation emissions. ‘Through constant innovation, our industry has managed to significantly improve aviation’s environmental performance, reducing CO2 emissions from a jet aircraft by 70% over the last 40 years. We are now determined to break new barriers, but this will only happen if our industry receives the adequate level of support for its efforts in research and technology. We call on governments to reinforce their partnership with our industry, to help us prepare the sustainable future of air transport’, said Mr Gayet, before concluding: ‘Aviation’s contribution to the world economy, and its role in today’s globalised society, are absolutely essential. There is therefore no alternative to finding a global solution which will ensure aviation’s sustainable development.’
For more information, please contact:
Alexandre Dossat (ICCAIA / ASD PR & Communications Manager)
Alexandre.dossat@asd-europe.org
Tel: +32 2 775 81 33 – Mobile: +32 493 09 79 87
Note:
The International Coordinating Council of Aerospace Industries Associations (ICCAIA) was established in 1972 to provide the civil aircraft industry observer status in the deliberations of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). ICCAIA brings together the aerospace industries associations of Brazil, Canada, Europe, Japan and the U.S.
www.iccaia.org
