The technology leaders released a joint statement at the 2024 Farnborough International Airshow emphasising the importance of accelerating efforts critical to understanding and reducing aviation’s non-CO2 effects.

The aerospace industry actively works to improve the understanding of non-CO2 emissions in collaboration with research institutions, universities and other stakeholders. Following an event today, the forum called for increased research funding for science needed to underpin technology choices, operational changes and policy decisions.

The leaders jointly call for increased research funding to develop the science needed to underpin technology choices, operational changes and policy decisions. We will continue to engage academia, the global climate and weather modelling community, government research organisations and industry partners to advance seven priorities for research:

1. Improve understanding of contrail formation, persistence, and climate impact. Progressing the science of contrail physics combined with increasing the fidelity of upper tropospheric humidity data in global climate and weather modelling will enable more accurate contrail forecasts and analysis data sets for performing impact assessment.

2. Improve understanding of emissions properties. The properties of fuels such as conventional jet fuel, SAF, and hydrogen as well as the combustion characteristics of engine technologies impact emissions properties that play a role in contrail formation and persistence.

3. Build research on aerosol cloud interactions. Aerosol cloud interactions result from the ability of aerosol particles to cause the formation of droplets or ice particles, affecting the radiative properties of clouds. Research is required to better understand these interactions and their potential impacts.

4. Improve understanding of the radiative impact and modelling uncertainty of NOx emissions. The effect of NOx emissions depends on where and when emissions are released into the atmosphere as well as atmospheric conditions. Further studies are needed to fully characterise these dependencies.

5. Improve understanding of the interdependencies and trade-offs of aviation emissions (NOx, soot, contrails, CO2, and noise). To enable management of aviation emissions for total climate impact reduction, the challenges of comparing impacts across emissions species with different characteristics and interactions need to be addressed.

6. Establish and improve common models for quantifying the effect of aviation on climate. Collaboration across communities working on contrails and cloud physics, atmospheric chemistry, fuels properties and chemistry, and aircraft data collection to support this research is essential and can benefit climate science and weather prediction.

7. Research on airspace network impacts of mitigation should be further investigated. Large scale research projects and operational analysis should be developed to better understand potential impacts to civil airspace operations.

They will also look into how they might be supported by the leasing business model.

Airbus revealed its ZEROe hydrogen powered aircraft ambition in 2020, focused on pioneering the technology required for hydrogen flight and developing the ecosystem to support it.

Avolon shares Airbus’ commitment to achieving the aviation sector’s decarbonisation goals, and has a track record of being a thought leader on future technologies through its investment in eVTOL developer Vertical Aerospace, and research into Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) production. Avolon is also committed to having a fleet that comprises 75% new-technology lower emissions aircraft by the end of 2025.

Paul Geaney, President and Chief Commercial Officer, Avolon, commented: “Joining the ZEROe Project is another step in Avolon’s sustainability journey, and we look forward to building on our long-standing partnership with Airbus to consider how the next generation of aircraft will be financed and commercialised. It will take a wide ecosystem of contributors to meet the challenges of hydrogen powered commercial flight, and Airbus is playing a crucial role in bringing partners together. While we continue to focus on supporting our customers in modernising their fleets with lower emissions aircraft, it is also vital we look beyond that at what can further drive our industry’s decarbonisation.”

Glenn Llewellyn, Vice-President ZEROe Project, Airbus, commented: “There is real value in bringing together industry leaders to help solve the challenges facing aviation. We know we can’t solve decarbonisation alone and welcome Avolon’s expertise and worldwide leadership in the aircraft leasing business. Working together to consider how the transition can be commercialised and financed for airline customers is crucial to success.”

The company’s 2024 Pilot and Technician Outlook (PTO) shows the industry will require nearly 2.4 million new professionals to support the growing commercial fleet and meet the long-term increase in air travel.

According to the latest PTO, commercial carriers will need the following new personnel through 2043 to sustain the global commercial fleet:

674,000 pilots

716,000 maintenance technicians

980,000 cabin crew members.

“Driven by aviation traffic trending above pre-pandemic levels, personnel attrition and commercial fleet growth, the demand for aviation personnel continues to rise,” said Chris Broom, vice president, commercial training solutions, Boeing Global Services.

“We are focused on being a reliable and innovative partner in the lifecycle of aviation training. Our offerings are rooted in competency-based training and assessment programmes to help ensure high quality aviation training starting in flight schools and in commercial operations while helping enhance aviation safety through immersive and virtual training solutions.”

The awards, organised by FlightGlobal, were held in London on July 21, 2024. Elbers was recognised for his ‘exceptional’ strategic leadership at IndiGo and his ‘significant’ contribution to the industry. 

Elbers said: “I am truly honoured to receive the Executive Leadership Award for Asia-Pacific at the 2024 Airline Strategy Awards in London yesterday eve. It is a testimony to the 100+ million customers annually choosing to fly IndiGo and a recognition of the strategic choices we made post Covid-19 on Network, Fleet, Customer Experience, Digital and so on. “Strategy without execution is a hallucination”, hence this award is attributed to the unwavering dedication and professionalism of my 35,000 IndiGo colleagues.”

This partnership leverages the strengths of the world’s leading aircraft manufacturer and the largest and most important international association of airports to make significant progress in both decarbonising aviation and mitigating aircraft noise impact.

This alliance will address key areas including Sustainable Aviation Fuels (SAF), hydrogen technologies, advanced air mobility, operations efficiency, and aircraft noise management practices. It will foster the exchange of information and perspectives on low carbon operations, communicate industry progress, jointly develop guidance materials, and potentially formulate unified positions on policies and standards to achieve the industry targets.

“This partnership marks a significant step in our collective efforts to reduce aviation's environmental impact,” said Julie Kitcher, Airbus Chief Sustainability Officer. “By combining our technological expertise with ACI World’s vast network and operational insights, we aim to influence policies and standards that support sustainable aviation and drive industry-wide innovation. Together, we can create a cohesive and aligned approach to achieving our decarbonisation targets and enhancing the sustainability of the global aviation sector”.

ACI World Director General and CEO Luis Felipe de Oliveira said: “Airbus and ACI World’s groundbreaking cooperation agreement marks a pivotal step in our journey towards a net-zero carbon aviation industry. This strategic alliance underscores the unwavering commitment of airports worldwide to sustainable aviation, ensuring that we not only reduce our environmental impact but also maximise the socio-economic benefits of air travel. By focusing on key areas such as Sustainable Aviation Fuels, hydrogen technologies, advanced air mobility, operational efficiency, and aircraft noise management, we are setting new benchmarks for sustainability in aviation, and paving the way for a greener future”.

Air travel demand continues to outpace economic growth in an increasingly connected world. Four years after the pandemic grounded most of the global fleet, air traffic growth has returned to the long-term trend Boeing forecast 20 years ago. Compared to 2023, passenger air traffic will rise an average of 4.7% annually over the next two decades, according to the CMO.

"This is a challenging and inspiring era for aviation. The return to more typical traffic growth shows how resilient our industry is, even as we all work through ongoing supply chain and production constraints amid other global challenges," said Brad McMullen, Boeing senior vice president of Commercial Sales and Marketing.

CMO forecast highlights through 2043:

The global commercial fleet is projected to grow 3.2% annually, more slowly than air traffic as airlines continue to boost productivity by increasing load factors and using airplanes more hours per day.

The air cargo fleet, with speed and reliability, consistently outperforms other modes of transport and will increase by two-thirds by 2043, to support 4.1% annual air cargo traffic growth.

Air travel trends:

The average global airline fare is about the same as it was 20 years ago, even as overall consumer prices doubled.

The number of global routes served by commercial airlines has returned to 2019 levels, even though nearly 20% of them are new, illustrating the adaptability of aviation in a dynamic market.

Key growth drivers:

South Asia passenger traffic will increase 7.4%, followed by Southeast Asia (7.2%) and Africa (6.4%), as emerging markets return to historical growth trends through the forecast period.

Eurasia is projected to lead all markets with the most airplane deliveries (22% of total) with North America (20%) and China (20%) close behind.

Single-aisle airplanes will make up 71% of the 2043 fleet after 33,380 new deliveries, serving short- to medium-haul routes with versatility.

The global widebody fleet will more than double, with twin-aisles comprising 44% of the Middle East fleet.

Services on the rise:

Boeing expects demand for commercial services valued at $4.4 trillion ─ driven by maintenance and modification options and digital solutions that increase efficiency.

With air travel expansion especially in emerging markets, the commercial aviation industry will require nearly 2.4 million new personnel as well as training to support new pilots, maintenance technicians and cabin crew.

"As airlines respond to robust passenger demand, the services market continues to expand, not only as a result of fleet growth, but also with an increased focus on reducing operating costs and deploying efficient and sustainable solutions," said Dan Abraham, senior vice president of Boeing Global Services Commercial Sales and Marketing.

According to Microsoft, the outage started with a subset of its customers experiencing issues with multiple Azure services. Commenting on X, The US tech giant said it was taking “mitigation actions” after services issues and “working on rerouting the impacted traffic to alternate systems to alleviate impact.”

Delhi Airport in India reported that due to the global IT issue, some of its services had been temporarily impacted this morning. It also said it was working closely with all stakeholders to minimise the inconvenience to its passengers.

Indian low-cost carrier said in a statement: “The airline is closely monitoring the situation and any further decisions regarding flight operations will be made based on updates from its cloud service provider. A dedicated team has been deployed to address these technical challenges and minimize disruptions. IndiGo is committed to ensuring the safety and comfort of its customers and is making every effort to resolve the issue with utmost priority and urgency.”

This Special Prorate Agreement will be effective as of 16 July 2024. 

The agreement was signed during a meeting at IndiGo's headquarters. In addition to the signing, the two parties discussed steps to strengthen their collaboration and to explore ways in which they can extend their cooperation in the coming years. 

Mark Sutch, chief commercial officer, IndiGo CarGo said: “We are consistently expanding IndiGo CarGo’s network and capabilities. The strategic focus on growing international presence is greatly complemented by our partnership with Air France KLM Martinair Cargo. This collaboration not only broadens our service offerings but also allows us to leverage their extensive global reach, thereby providing our customers with a wider array of options across diverse geographies.” 

GertJan Roelands, senior vice president commercial, Air France KLM Martinair Cargo said: “India is a strategic growth market for AFKLMP Cargo. Having a strong partner in India is a great building block in our network strategy. The cooperation between IndiGo CarGo and AFKLMP Cargo will give our customers even more choice and solutions.”

The flights on the Abu Dhabi to Mangaluru route will operate daily, from August 09, 2024, and the Tiruchirappalli to Abu Dhabi will operate four times a week, starting from August 11, 2024. Starting from August 10, the direct flights from Coimbatore, also known as ‘Manchester of South India’, will operate thrice weekly. 

Recently, the airline had announced new direct flight between Bengaluru and Abu Dhabi, which will operate six times a week from August 01, 2024. These new routes will further strengthen IndiGo’s international connectivity, with non-stop flights connecting the thriving capital city of United Arab Emirates to key cities in Southern India.

Vinay Malhotra, Head of Global Sales, IndiGo, said: “We are pleased to announce new direct flights from Mangaluru, Coimbatore as well as Tiruchirappalli to Abu Dhabi. With the addition of these flights, IndiGo now operates 89 non-stop flights a week to Abu Dhabi from 13 cities in India. These flights will provide smooth and convenient options for business as well as leisure travel to the UAE and further add to the gateways for travelers to explore the wonderful island city and beyond. As India's preferred airline, we remain steadfast in our commitment to providing enhanced connectivity and delivering an affordable, on-time, courteous and hassle-free travel experience to our customers.” 

The new facility is the first in India dedicated to supporting the development and delivery of IFEC solutions. Over 200 skilled engineers have been employed at the point of launch, with growth plans in place to scale the software engineering talent at the facility to support the increasing demand from airlines for IFEC solutions that will deliver personalised experiences for their passengers.

A range of software will be developed, tested and sustained in state-of-the-art laboratories throughout the facility to deliver passenger experiences for narrowbody and widebody aircraft that meet airlines’ needs. These include the X Series in-flight entertainment system, and digital solutions including airline interactives which enables airlines to create unique seatback passenger experiences, IFEC development support via SDKs (software development kits), and mobile companion apps to name a few.

Ken Sain, chief executive officer of Panasonic Avionics Corporation, said: “Innovative, future-focused and proven software is at the heart of every IFEC solution that Panasonic Avionics develops, creating a digital channel that enables our airline customers to engage with their passengers more effectively than ever before.

“With its huge number of skilled engineers, and fast-growing aviation sector, India is a natural location for us to invest in for the future of our business, and we look forward to accelerating our software innovation and design capabilities from our new Pune facility.” 

Satyen Yadav, chief technology officer of Panasonic Avionics Corporation, said: "Today marks a significant milestone as we embark on a journey to accelerate the delivery of personalised digital experiences for airline passengers. We look forward to delivering cutting-edge software solutions that delight customers both in the region and globally, and to growing our software talent in Pune.”