European aviation industry sees 99M tons of CO2 saved through SAF by 2050

In the Netherlands, European aviation industry is committed to reaching this target and contribute to the goals set in the European Green Deal and the Paris Agreement. Destination 2050 shows a possible pathway that combines new technologies, improved operations, sustainable aviation fuels and economic measures. Absolute emissions are reduced by 92%, while the remaining 8% is removed from the atmosphere through negative emissions, achieved through natural carbon sinks or dedicated technologies. 

Royal Netherlands Aerospace Centre and SEO Amsterdam Economics conducted this study commissioned by the representatives of European airports, airlines, aerospace manufacturers and air navigation service providers. It assesses to what extent four groups of sustainability measures are able to reduce carbon emissions until 2050, strongly influenced by policies and actions. The effects of these measures are compared to a hypothetical reference scenario taking into account continuous demand growth and the recent COVID-19 impact. These sustainability measures result in the following net CO2 emissions reductions in the year 2050:

111 MtCO2 through improvements in aircraft and engine technology

60 MtCO2 by hydrogen-powered aircraft on intra-European routes and 

51 MtCO2 by kerosene-powered or (hybrid-)electric aircraft; 

18 MtCO2 through improvements in air traffic management (ATM) and aircraft operations; 

99 MtCO2 through using drop-in sustainable aviation fuels (SAF);

22 MtCO2 through economic measures (carbon removal projects only).