Ten Airlines Form Aviation Climate Taskforce

(29 Oct 2021) Air Canada, Air France-KLM, American Airlines, Cathay Pacific, Delta Air Lines, JetBlue, Lufthansa, Southwest Airlines, United Airlines, and Virgin Atlantic, together with the Boston Consulting Group (BCG), have formed the Aviation Climate Taskforce (ACT), a new non-profit organisation founded to tackle the challenge of eliminating carbon emissions in aviation through innovation and collaboration.

This cross-sector partnership will contribute to the airline’s ongoing decarbonisation efforts and commitment to reaching net-zero carbon emissions by 2050.

Augustus Tang, Cathay Pacific's Chief Executive Officer, said, “Dramatically reducing emissions is a critically important but also highly challenging task facing the aviation sector. At Cathay Pacific, we recognise the importance of working with different sectors to develop the kinds of radically new technologies that will be required to decarbonise airline operations and enable us to meet our net-zero carbon emissions goal. We are very pleased to join hands with a group of like-minded organisations as founding members of the Aviation Climate Taskforce to accelerate the development of breakthrough technologies and lead the way in this very important area.”

Aviation contributed less than 3% of global carbon dioxide emissions annually before the COVID19 pandemic, but that number may rise as the industry continues to develop.

ACT will drive technological innovation and accelerate the research and development lifecycle of emerging technologies. It will take a portfolio approach, with the majority of its focus on critical medium-term solutions, such as synthetic fuel, and additional focus on more near-term solutions, such as emerging bio-based SAF pathways, and long-term solutions, such as hydrogen technologies.

Through the Innovation Network, ACT will work to accelerate breakthroughs in early, upstream technologies, while its Collaboration Forum will identify other ways to jointly reduce carbon emissions by expediting adoption and scaling of emerging technologies.

ACT has promised to engage with experts, activists, policymakers, and thought leaders to help offer a clear way forward for the deployment of innovative technologies.

Michael Rousseau, President and Chief Executive Officer at Air Canada, said, “Air Canada is highly focused on its environmental performance and has committed to reduce its footprint further by setting a target of net zero emissions by 2050. Combatting global warming requires a global response, and we are pleased to be the first Canadian airline to join the Aviation Climate Taskforce. As a founding member, we will work with other global carriers and invest in emerging technologies to advance the decarbonization of our sector and build a long-term, sustainable aviation industry.”