NZ Herald
  • Home
  • Latest news
  • Herald NOW
  • Video
  • New Zealand
  • Sport
  • World
  • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Podcasts
  • Quizzes
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Viva
  • Weather

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • New Zealand
    • All New Zealand
    • Crime
    • Politics
    • Education
    • Open Justice
    • Scam Update
  • Herald NOW
  • On The Up
  • World
    • All World
    • Australia
    • Asia
    • UK
    • United States
    • Middle East
    • Europe
    • Pacific
  • Business
    • All Business
    • MarketsSharesCurrencyCommoditiesStock TakesCrypto
    • Markets with Madison
    • Media Insider
    • Business analysis
    • Personal financeKiwiSaverInterest ratesTaxInvestment
    • EconomyInflationGDPOfficial cash rateEmployment
    • Small business
    • Business reportsMood of the BoardroomProject AucklandSustainable business and financeCapital markets reportAgribusiness reportInfrastructure reportDynamic business
    • Deloitte Top 200 Awards
    • CompaniesAged CareAgribusinessAirlinesBanking and financeConstructionEnergyFreight and logisticsHealthcareManufacturingMedia and MarketingRetailTelecommunicationsTourism
  • Opinion
    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Editorials
    • Business analysis
    • Premium opinion
    • Letters to the editor
  • Politics
  • Sport
    • All Sport
    • OlympicsParalympics
    • RugbySuper RugbyNPCAll BlacksBlack FernsRugby sevensSchool rugby
    • CricketBlack CapsWhite Ferns
    • Racing
    • NetballSilver Ferns
    • LeagueWarriorsNRL
    • FootballWellington PhoenixAuckland FCAll WhitesFootball FernsEnglish Premier League
    • GolfNZ Open
    • MotorsportFormula 1
    • Boxing
    • UFC
    • BasketballNBABreakersTall BlacksTall Ferns
    • Tennis
    • Cycling
    • Athletics
    • SailingAmerica's CupSailGP
    • Rowing
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Viva - Food, fashion & beauty
    • Society Insider
    • Royals
    • Sex & relationships
    • Food & drinkRecipesRecipe collectionsRestaurant reviewsRestaurant bookings
    • Health & wellbeing
    • Fashion & beauty
    • Pets & animals
    • The Selection - Shop the trendsShop fashionShop beautyShop entertainmentShop giftsShop home & living
    • Milford's Investing Place
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • TV
    • MoviesMovie reviews
    • MusicMusic reviews
    • BooksBook reviews
    • Culture
    • ReviewsBook reviewsMovie reviewsMusic reviewsRestaurant reviews
  • Travel
    • All Travel
    • News
    • New ZealandNorthlandAucklandWellingtonCanterburyOtago / QueenstownNelson-TasmanBest NZ beaches
    • International travelAustraliaPacific IslandsEuropeUKUSAAfricaAsia
    • Rail holidays
    • Cruise holidays
    • Ski holidays
    • Luxury travel
    • Adventure travel
  • Kāhu Māori news
  • Environment
    • All Environment
    • Our Green Future
  • Talanoa Pacific news
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Property Insider
    • Interest rates tracker
    • Residential property listings
    • Commercial property listings
  • Health
  • Technology
    • All Technology
    • AI
    • Social media
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
    • Opinion
    • Audio & podcasts
  • Weather forecasts
    • All Weather forecasts
    • Kaitaia
    • Whangārei
    • Dargaville
    • Auckland
    • Thames
    • Tauranga
    • Hamilton
    • Whakatāne
    • Rotorua
    • Tokoroa
    • Te Kuiti
    • Taumaranui
    • Taupō
    • Gisborne
    • New Plymouth
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Dannevirke
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Levin
    • Paraparaumu
    • Masterton
    • Wellington
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Blenheim
    • Westport
    • Reefton
    • Kaikōura
    • Greymouth
    • Hokitika
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
    • Wānaka
    • Oamaru
    • Queenstown
    • Dunedin
    • Gore
    • Invercargill
  • Meet the journalists
  • Promotions & competitions
  • OneRoof property listings
  • Driven car news

Puzzles & Quizzes

  • Puzzles
    • All Puzzles
    • Sudoku
    • Code Cracker
    • Crosswords
    • Cryptic crossword
    • Wordsearch
  • Quizzes
    • All Quizzes
    • Morning quiz
    • Afternoon quiz
    • Sports quiz

Regions

  • Northland
    • All Northland
    • Far North
    • Kaitaia
    • Kerikeri
    • Kaikohe
    • Bay of Islands
    • Whangarei
    • Dargaville
    • Kaipara
    • Mangawhai
  • Auckland
  • Waikato
    • All Waikato
    • Hamilton
    • Coromandel & Hauraki
    • Matamata & Piako
    • Cambridge
    • Te Awamutu
    • Tokoroa & South Waikato
    • Taupō & Tūrangi
  • Bay of Plenty
    • All Bay of Plenty
    • Katikati
    • Tauranga
    • Mount Maunganui
    • Pāpāmoa
    • Te Puke
    • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Hawke's Bay
    • All Hawke's Bay
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Havelock North
    • Central Hawke's Bay
    • Wairoa
  • Taranaki
    • All Taranaki
    • Stratford
    • New Plymouth
    • Hāwera
  • Manawatū - Whanganui
    • All Manawatū - Whanganui
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Manawatū
    • Tararua
    • Horowhenua
  • Wellington
    • All Wellington
    • Kapiti
    • Wairarapa
    • Upper Hutt
    • Lower Hutt
  • Nelson & Tasman
    • All Nelson & Tasman
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Tasman
  • Marlborough
  • West Coast
  • Canterbury
    • All Canterbury
    • Kaikōura
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
  • Otago
    • All Otago
    • Oamaru
    • Dunedin
    • Balclutha
    • Alexandra
    • Queenstown
    • Wanaka
  • Southland
    • All Southland
    • Invercargill
    • Gore
    • Stewart Island
  • Gisborne

Media

  • Video
    • All Video
    • NZ news video
    • Herald NOW
    • Business news video
    • Politics news video
    • Sport video
    • World news video
    • Lifestyle video
    • Entertainment video
    • Travel video
    • Markets with Madison
    • Kea Kids news
  • Podcasts
    • All Podcasts
    • The Front Page
    • On the Tiles
    • Ask me Anything
    • The Little Things
  • Cartoons
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Premium
Home / Business / Companies / Airlines

Alexandre de Juniac: Making the aviation business one of sustainable freedom

By Alexandre de Juniac
NZ Herald·
12 Nov, 2019 02:00 AM4 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

    Reminder, this is a Premium article and requires a subscription to read.

Alexandre de Juniac says aviation is the safest form of long-distance travel the world has known. File photo / Supplied

Alexandre de Juniac says aviation is the safest form of long-distance travel the world has known. File photo / Supplied

Opinion

COMMENT

It's no secret that aviation has come in for a good deal of scrutiny and criticism over its environmental impacts. The flight shaming phenomenon and proposals for a Green New Deal that would reduce and even replace air travel with other modes of transport have been in the news around the world, not just in Europe and the United States, where they respectively originated.

Less well known is that environmental sustainability has always been high on aviation's agenda. Today's new aircraft emit 50 per cent less carbon monoxide and 90 per cent less smoke and unburned hydrocarbons than those made 50 years ago, while carbon emissions from the average journey are actually half what they were in 1990.

READ MORE:
• Climate of guilt: Flying no longer the high road for some
• Greta Thunberg: The 'flight shaming' phenomenon is impacting the airline industry
• Air NZ on track to be 'the world's least unsustainable airline'
• EU warns on aviation emission levels

Moreover, since 2008, the industry, including airlines, airports, equipment manufacturers and air navigation services providers, has had a goal to address its 2 per cent share of human-caused CO2 by capping net emissions from 2020 and cutting them in half by 2050, compared to 2005 levels.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

In 2016, nations of the world working through the International Civil Aviation Organization, (ICAO), the specialised body of the United Nations devoted to civil
aviation, agreed to the vision of carbon neutral growth from 2020. The mechanism to achieve it is the Carbon Offset and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation
(CORSIA).

At the recently concluded 40th ICAO Assembly, member nations reconfirmed their commitment to CORSIA. In addition, ICAO will now start looking at a long-term aspirational goal to cut emissions — so governments and industry will be aligned.

These are momentous developments for the environment, for everyone who flies and for the aviation industry. Demonstrating a commitment to sustainability is critical to earning aviation's license to grow. And without growth, aviation cannot spread its many economic and social benefits.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

This is particularly important in developing nations, where access to air connectivity is crucial to 15 of the UN's 17 Sustainable Development Goals.

Simply put, flying is freedom; and that freedom continues to spread. This year, travelers can choose from of 22,375 unique city pairs connected by air. That's more than double the number that were available in 1998.

Discover more

Opinion

Peter Lyons: Govt should tell Rio Tinto where to stick its smelter

24 Oct 04:00 PM
Opinion

Ron Ainsbury: The cult of the CEO

05 Nov 04:00 PM
Opinion

Patrick Carvalho: World's first free traffic congestion solution

07 Nov 04:00 PM
Opinion

Richard Prebble: Sky's the limit for Auckland public transport

10 Nov 04:00 PM
The International Air Transport Association believes aviation's carbon footprint can be reduced by 80 per cent. File photo / Getty Images
The International Air Transport Association believes aviation's carbon footprint can be reduced by 80 per cent. File photo / Getty Images

Concurrently, flying is becoming more affordable and accessible to more people. The average return fare in 2019 before surcharges and tax is forecast to be 61 per cent lower than in 1998, after adjusting for inflation.

Young people in emerging economies have exposure to travel opportunities that their parents could only have dreamed of at the same age. Travelers can also fly with confidence, because aviation is the safest form of long-distance travel the world has known.

Aviation makes globalisation possible, and globalisation leads to economic development. Since 1990, globalisation has lifted 1 billion people from poverty. The more people who enjoy the freedom to fly, the greater the benefits to all the people of this world.

As with any human activity there is an environmental cost, but flying is not the enemy, carbon is. In capping emissions, it is forecast that CORSIA will mitigate around 2.5 billion tonnes of CO2 and generate over $40 billion in climate finance between 2021 and 2035.

And the industry is not sitting still.

Aviation has also taken the lead in identifying, testing and certifying sustainable, alternative fuels, which we believe can reduce aviation's carbon footprint by 80 per cent. We have proved they work.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Now we need governments to build supportive policies to invigorate the sustainable fuels industry. Down the road, new technologies, such as electric airplanes, will also play a role.

Alexandre de Juniac. Photo / Supplied
Alexandre de Juniac. Photo / Supplied

It is our duty to protect the planet from the disastrous impacts of climate change. Some say the answer is to stop or heavily reduce flying. That would have grave consequences for people, jobs, and economies the world over. It would be a step backward to an isolated society that is smaller, poorer and constrained.

Flying has made the world a better and freer place and we are committed to sustainably making it better and even freer still.

• Alexandre de Juniac is the Director General and CEO of the International Air Transport Association (IATA). IATA's 290 member airlines represent 82 per cent of global air traffic.

Save

    Share this article

    Reminder, this is a Premium article and requires a subscription to read.

Latest from Airlines

Premium
Airlines

Air India crash: No fuel switch checks ordered for New Zealand jets

Premium
Airlines

Flight on time: Airlines' performance ranked in new global report

Airlines

Regional airline grounded for 10 days by Civil Aviation Authority


Sponsored

Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Airlines

Premium
Premium
Air India crash: No fuel switch checks ordered for New Zealand jets
Airlines

Air India crash: No fuel switch checks ordered for New Zealand jets

Amid anger and disputes overseas, CAA says no new Dreamliner checks needed here.

15 Jul 11:01 PM
Premium
Premium
Flight on time: Airlines' performance ranked in new global report
Airlines

Flight on time: Airlines' performance ranked in new global report

15 Jul 07:01 AM
Regional airline grounded for 10 days by Civil Aviation Authority
Airlines

Regional airline grounded for 10 days by Civil Aviation Authority

14 Jul 03:12 AM


Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky
Sponsored

Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky

06 Jul 09:47 PM
NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP