Airlines are extremely selective in the vocabulary they use in the aircraft and on the ground as they understand the dramatic affect their words can have. Using the right words can make the public feel safer while on the aircraft or even more comfortable with their overall experience.
New studies have been looking into how airlines can work to becoming more “Green”. As the world turns and look at aviation as being on of the largest contributors to greenhouses gases we are demanding for some changes to be made.
Eco-Friendly aviation has always been on the mind of developers as we create more energy efficient engines and look for fuel alternatives for aircraft. Although in the recent times these has been a new term that has surfaced and has been bringing a bad taste to flyers.
Flight Shaming
As protest and rallies to raise awareness and action towards climate change went global this last month the topic of flight shaming has taken the headlines. This movement has been led by Swedish Climate Activist Greta Thunburg.
The idea is to promote more climate-friendly forma of transportation. Those individuals who are using aircraft for private use have been under fire from the media for being environmentally destructive.
The media has been drawn towards the royal family for choosing to fly private over commercial on their recent tours. In the same token during this last years Environmental Summit many high profile individuals flew in on their private jets to the event.
This was perceived upon very negatively in the public eye as more data was released explaining the overall damages that can come over the use of these jet fuel burning engines.
Sources have been suggesting that traveler take the slower option as compared to air travel. A few various publications have listed the potential options of taking a train route as compared to flying there. Although the alternative will take a great deal of time longer it will have an less destructive impact on the environment.
Certainly although there are great points towards demonstrating that a train could potentially use less energy and resources as compared to a jet airliner the aviation industry is not going to disappear overnight.
Airlines quickly took notice of how important being environmentally conscious is for the traveling public. After testing a few strategies they have finally come down to a solution towards bringing peace of mind to the flying public.
Carbon Offset Taxes
A study from researchers at the University of British Columbia in Canada on environmental Defense Fund started testing around the terminology Carbon Pricing on airline tickets. Their studies show that you and I are more open and willing to pay for a Carbon Offset fee as compared to just a Carbon Tax how airlines charge today.
The expirment was done with providing individuals with two different flight alternatives for the same route. One route of the two routes was priced at $14 higher than the other flight. Yet the flight with the higher price included a description that said as follows ” carbon offset on aviation fuel production and importation” as well as a “Carbon tax on airplane travel and cargo”
Surprisingly enough individuals were more inclined to pay the extra $14 without hesitation. The problem with the original Carbon tax that we see on our current fare breakdowns now is that it leaves the traveler with the guilty feeling of accepting the damages. When we create a Carbon Offset tax this changes the approach on the problem. Now it is no longer us directly at fault for choosing to fly but its a joint effort between us and the airline to reduce our carbon footprint.
A carbon offset tax focuses on how the airline and consumer can work together to minimize the total output of greenhouses gases. This tells us that the airline is taking action towards environmental preservation stances. The approach is no longer on taxing the consumer as a penalty for choosing to fly.
We all understand that Global Aviation contributes to a large percentage of Carbon dioxide emissions in the world. As the economy and projections for the aviation industry grow for the years the come the need for more sustainable practices are on demand.
A few airlines have already worked towards using these practices in their own systems already. Some of the airlines have already reported an increase in travelers after annoucing their actions towards more environmentally consious business practices. Some of the funds from the Carbon Offset taxes have been going towards plating more trees in deforested areas or even the installation of Solar Panels in various locations.
The Airlines currently leading the way here in the U.S are Delta, Jetblue, United, Alaska and Frontier Airlines who advertises as being one of the greenest airlines in the United States currently.
They have been offering individuals options to purchase additional carbon offset packages to their travel total. Some airlines have even created programs to where airline miles can be donated to partnering organization working towards preserving the environment.
Now the question is will this actually work towards making an active impact towards offsetting the environmental impact on the world that aviation industry has made? What worries many individuals is that this is just another corporate plan to generate more income and then spend it poorly on things that will not actually benefit the environment. The greatest concern lies in ensuring that these funds appropriately get used towards improving the quality of the climate crisis.
Most importantly is the process feasible in actually improving the quality of the environment. We are all tired of dead end solutions that do not actually bring resolution to the problems we have in the world. The public is demanding for real solutions to the problems we are facing and the process towards a better flying world is certainly going to take a lot of time and effort.
What are your thoughts on recent Flight shaming? Will you be returning one of your flights across the states for a less convenient train ride? Or do you have no problem with paying a little extra to offset the carbon release by your flight?
This week we will be looking forward to seeing Delta’s quarterly earnings release on the 10th of October. For a full chart markup on the stocks that we are going to be trading the next week make sure you check out last weeks post!
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