Policies and collaborative PartnershiP for sustainable aviation

The report identifies a significant gap between the aviation industry's 2050 CO2 reduction goals and a 'business-as-usual' baseline, estimating an 85% reduction gap. It argues that achieving these targets requires a combination of infrastructure improvements, radical aircraft R&D, and the scaling of second-generation biofuels. The document advocates for positive fiscal incentives over green levies and taxes, which it claims drain industry funds without ensuring reinvestment in abatement. It emphasizes the need for a global sectoral market-based measure (MBM) approach through ICAO to avoid competitive distortion and carbon leakage.

• There is a substantial gap between projected CO2 emissions and the aviation industry's 2050 targets. Even with continuous investment in fuel-efficient aircraft, the 2050 goal leaves an 85% CO2 emission reduction gap compared to the business-as-usual approach.
• The report identifies four primary carbon abatement levers: aviation infrastructure improvements, additional R&D for radical new aircraft technologies, aviation biofuels, and market-based measures (MBM) such as emissions trading and offsetting.
• Fiscal incentives are considered more effective than taxes or levies for driving decarbonization. Green levies and taxes are viewed as non-viable because they remove capital from the industry without guaranteeing that the funds are reinvested in CO2 reduction projects.
• Infrastructure improvements in air traffic management (ATM), such as NextGen in North America and SESAR in Europe, are urgent and require an estimated total investment of US$ 58 billion by 2030.
• Second-generation 'drop-in' biofuels (e.g., from algae or forestry waste) are a critical lever, but scaling them to meet 2050 goals would require 13.6 million barrels per day. The International Energy Agency (IEA) estimates that US$ 320 billion to US$ 480 billion is needed for second-generation biofuel development by 2050.
• Early aircraft retirement is dismissed as an uneconomical option due to high costs and limited abatement potential, with an estimated global cost of US$ 680 billion between 2010 and 2050.
• The report argues for a global sectoral MBM approach developed through ICAO to prevent a 'patchwork' of national or regional schemes, which could lead to carbon leakage and competitive distortion.
• In India, aviation is a significant GDP contributor, but the sector faces challenges in infrastructure and energy security. The Investment Commission of India estimates a need for US$ 30 billion for airport infrastructure alone until 2020.

APA

World Economic Forum (2011). Policies and collaborative PartnershiP for sustainable aviation. http://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_ATT_SustainableAviation_Report_2011.pdf

Chicago

World Economic Forum. Policies and collaborative PartnershiP for sustainable aviation. 2011. http://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_ATT_SustainableAviation_Report_2011.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=World Economic Forum |title=Policies and collaborative PartnershiP for sustainable aviation |date=February 2011 |url=http://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_ATT_SustainableAviation_Report_2011.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{worldeconomicforum2011policies, author = {{World Economic Forum}}, title = {{Policies and collaborative PartnershiP for sustainable aviation}}, institution = {World Economic Forum}, year = {2011}, month = feb, url = {http://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_ATT_SustainableAviation_Report_2011.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }