Flight International - 04

With the major breakthroughs needed to
curb aviation emissions still some years from
introduction, operators are taking small efficiency
steps which are adding up to deliver real change
Quick wins
Tony Harrington Brisbane
With demands intensifying for aviation to
cut its emissions, airlines increasingly are
turning to so-called “one percenters”:
quick fixes which deliver immediate
results. They are also turning to interim technologies
while they wait for bigger breakthroughs.
Headline emission reductions will come from
sustainable aviation fuels, new propulsion and
airframe designs, streamlined airspace management,
and carbon removal technologies. But their
availability at effective scale remains years away.
So airlines are pursuing incremental but immediate
improvements through changes to their daily
procedures, upgrading with already-available
products, or investing in medium-term technologies.
They are also harvesting fresh insights from
the mountains of data collected by aircraft, but
historically never explored, or through greater use of
real-time information.
flaps and engine thrust reversers can also quickly
but marginally cut fuel burn and emissions.
Other initiatives include the more widespread use
of lightweight seats, catering trolleys and galley
equipment, removal of duty-free stock from aircraft,
and providing in-flight connectivity for passengers’
smart devices, removing the need for weighty entertainment
systems to be installed on some aircraft.
Additionally, lightweight containers and nets
are increasingly being used for cargo, and even
recyclable cardboard pallets which reduce the weight
of freight, but not the payload.
And there is a growing switch to lighter components,
from aircraft tyres to wing and fuselage panels,
and efficiency enhancements ranging from thinner
paint to aerodynamic treatments.
Delta Air Lines plans to retrofit more than 200
of its 737s with Aero Design Labs components
Deliverable benefits
Realistically, these step changes will deliver limited
benefits – by some estimates, around 2% of aviation’s
decarbonisation efforts. But they remain important
because their benefits are deliverable now.
Operational initiatives include single-engine taxiing
by aircraft or towing by electric or hybrid tugs,
and the use of airport electricity instead of aircraftgenerated
energy to power them while parked.
Where possible, optimised air routes and initiatives
such as continuous descent profiles are being
used to shorten flights and cut emissions, while engine
core cleaning and modified deployment of wing
Robin Guess/Shutterstock
64 Flight International April 2023