General News
Below are links to stories of general interest in relation to aviation and airports.
Report says airport capacity constraints and demand reduction on flying needed to hit UK net zero target
A report by low carbon energy consultants Element Energy (EE) analysing the UK government’s ‘Jet Zero’ strategy to hit net zero aviation emissions by 2050, with interim reduction targets for the 2030s, concludes the scenarios are over-optimistic. The report concludes that measures to limit demand for air travel would be more effective and less risky as a means of reducing carbon emissions. EE estimates the aviation sector will need to cut emissions faster and deeper in the near term than the government is currently projecting. The report argues that the government’s plans overestimate the likely improvements in operations, technology and alternative fuels, along with out-of-sector solutions such as engineered GHG removals, and are unlikely to be developed at the speed and scale necessary. An obvious way to limit growth in air travel demand is to stop airports expanding, at least until there are proven, workable ways to fuel aircraft without emitting carbon or creating contrails. It is highly risky to depend on unproven, speculative technologies to remove CO2 from the atmosphere.
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New review of cerebral consequences of environmental noise exposure – including plane noise
A group of scientists, mainly in Germany, have done further studies on the impact of noise on health. This includes aircraft noise, as well as noise from roads, railways, wind turbines and general background noise. They say there has been more research on cardiovascular impacts, but little on brain and "associated neuropsychiatric outcomes." These impacts include depression, anxiety, cognitive decline and risk of strokes. As with the impacts on the cardiovascular system, the mechanism of damage may be the involvement of reactive oxygen species/oxidative stress and inflammatory pathways. The authors looked at a number of studies, some on mice. The results are unclear, but indicative of the negative impact of noise - perhaps especially the intermittent but loud noise from aircraft - is potentially damaging. The impact may be worse when aircraft noise exposure is in addition to other noise sources. Anecdotally, the mental health impacts of depression and anxiety, for vulnerable people, from inescapable plane noise, at home, are well known. .
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Gatwick to start new 6 week consultation, on its expansion plans, on 14th June
Gatwick airport says it will start a new statutory public consultation into its plans to turn its northern, standby runway into a full runway for departing flights. The 6-week consultation will run from 14th June to 27th July. The airport says the consultation will also have updates, including on the highway design changes, from the Autumn 2021 consultation, based on responses received. Full details of the revised plans for the roads around the airport will be published at the start of the consultation. There are changes to the plans for the North Terminal junction, and additional road lanes in two places. The main expansion proposal is to reposition the centre line of the northern runway by 12 metres, so planes can use both runways at the same time (though only departures from the northern runway). There are the usual claims about jobs and economic benefits ... The only mentions of the carbon emissions are how, magically, more flights are going to help the airport "meet its goal of zero airport emissions before 2040." Amazing. [That, of course, excludes the 10 million extra annual passengers]. They hope the runway could be operational by summer 2029.PRESS RELEASE: London Gatwick
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Government policy document “Flightpath to the Future” – hand in glove with aviation industry, for more growth
The UK government has published a new statement on aviation, called "Flightpath to the future: a strategic framework for the aviation sector" - medium-term strategic framework for the UK aviation sector. It is a 10-point plan that "supports the Department for Transport’s vision for a modern, innovative and efficient sector over the next 10 years." The DfT wants the sector to be "successful." The plan is focused on growing a "sustainable" sector; it wants airport growth "within our strict environmental criteria." (sic). It wants to help the consumer by cutting ticket prices. Nowhere is there any substantive ambition to reduce carbon emissions, other than aspirations to deliver "on our aspiration for zero emission flights across the UK this decade. We will also seek to deliver our ambition for 10% SAF to be blended into the UK fuel mix by 2030". It demonstrates how closely the DfT and the aviation industry are aligned. There is nothing concrete on noise. It is far more interested in the convenience of air passengers, the financial success of the sector, and numbers of jobs, than environmental impacts.
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New “Travel Smart” campaign asks businesses to reduce their air travel and report on progress
A new T&E (Transport & Environment) ranking of corporate air travel shows that some companies are reducing the amount their staff fly, but most are not doing enough. The ranking, launched as part of T&E’s new Travel Smart campaign, grades 230 US and European companies according to eight indicators, relating to emissions reduction targets, reporting and air travel emissions. The analysis, which includes 39 UK businesses, sheds light on the significant efforts certain UK businesses have still to make to reduce their corporate travel emissions. Some companies make no specific effort to reduce business travel emissions, nor disclose their air travel emissions. Many companies can be as effective and even more efficient by flying less. Cutting down on business travel makes financial sense for companies. The Travel Smart campaign, launched with a coalition of 12 partners, asks companies to commit publicly to an absolute target of at least 50% reduction in flying compared to the 2019 level, by 2025 or sooner; to implement reductions in flying and choose other modes of connectivity and transport; and to report on progress towards decreased emissions.
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Mr Justice Holgate has refused permission for JR of Southampton airport expansion
Southampton Airport won planning permission to extend its runway in April. Now a High Court judge, Mr Justice Holgate, has dismissed campaigners' claims that the planned extension of Southampton Airport's runway would be unlawful. GOESA Ltd (Group Opposed to the Expansion of Southampton Airport) was set up after Eastleigh Borough Council gave permission to extend the runway by 164m (538ft) in April 2021. It said the council was wrong to approve it and in justifying it. But now Mr Justice Holgate declined the group's claim for a judicial review. If the runway is extended, the airport will be able to handle larger planes, carrying more passengers - the type of planes used by EasyJet or Ryanair to take people on sunshine holidays to Mediterranean beaches and European short breaks. If GOESA does not appeal, then the runway construction can begin. The airport would likely start that next winter, to be ready for the 2023 season.
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Government not keen on a frequent flyer levy to replace APD
There have been many requests to government to consider a frequent flyer levy, by which people could have one leisure flight per year with no tax, or little tax – but every subsequent flight would pay successively more tax. So someone going on their 5th or 6th flight of the year would be paying a […]
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NGOs write to Aviation Minister asking that airport expansions are stopped until aviation CO2 emissions can actually be reduced
Currently there are expansion plans by 7 UK airports (Gatwick, Stansted, Luton, Bristol, Leeds Bradford, Southampton and Manston) and government has no coherent policy on aviation carbon emissions in relation to the UK "net zero" by 2050 target. So a group of NGOs (AEF, AirportWatch, Friends of the Earth, Green Alliance, Greenpeace, Possible and T&E) has written to Aviation Minister, Robert Courts, calling on the Government to withdraw its policy support for airport expansion until aviation carbon emissions are actually falling, and wider UK emissions are substantially below a 1.5C-compliant trajectory. It also voices concerns that the Government’s draft Jet Zero strategy is built around assumptions that future increases in sustainable fuels and carbon removals will occur after 2030, but with no clear policy plan to ensure that happens. The letter points out that neither the Airports National Policy Statement (ANPS) for a new runway at Heathrow nor the Making Best Use (MBU) policy for other airports – both released in 2018 – have yet been assessed for their compatibility with achieving net zero aviation by 2050. Planning authorities should not be left reliant on out-of-date policies when determining applications for airport expansion - as happens now.
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Element Energy report shows air travel demand reduction is essential, to cut UK aviation carbon
New report for the Aviation Environment Federation, by Element Energy, looks at the reality of the UK government's reliance on novel technologies to eventually cut aviation carbon emissions. The DfT is depending on greatly improved aircraft energy efficiency, as well as electric planes, planes powered by hydrogen, and a huge component of new lower-carbon fuels, SAF (sustainable aviation fuels) replacing kerosene, and carbon capture and storage. The DfT does not consider reducing demand for flying, and considers an increase of 70% above the level in 2018, by 2050, as acceptable. Element Energy show the aspiration of 2% annual plane efficiency gains is unrealistic, and even 1.5% will be difficult. They consider that novel fuels might, at best, produce a carbon saving of 60%, not the 100% the DfT hopes for. The price of carbon in future needs to be high, for international flights, and if it does not increase enough, flying demand will not decrease - to the DfT forecasts are unreliable. The study concludes that, even with a high proportion of SAF being used, and optimal fuel efficiency gains, by 2050 there would need to be a reduction in flights and passengers of around 45%, if the sector is to achieve the target of 15MtCO2 (even that is a huge amount of carbon).
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Tees Valley airport loses link to Heathrow. Is the airport even needed?
Heathrow (always keen to make more money) wants to charge the maximum possible on its take-off and landing fees. Airlines and people who like to fly are angry about their trips costing perhaps £10 more than before .... that ignores the fact that rail journeys are hugely more expensive than flights, which are crazily cheap. Teeside airport has now lost its link to Heathrow, as Loganair says it cannot make money on the route, if the Heathrow charges are a bit higher. Councils like the kudos of having an airport, and the Tees Valley Mayor, Ben Houchen, is very keen on the airport increasing its number of passengers are routes, regardless of the increased carbon emissions. Some are asking if there needs to be a Teeside airport, as it is 44 miles from Newcastle airport. The recent launch of a direct train service from Middlesbrough to London means the Heathrow cancellation isn't much of a loss.