Airlines
European Aviation Faces a €820 billion Tab to Reach Net Zero
Europe’s airlines urge more incentives to help shoulder the cost of investments necessary to reach net zero by 2050.
While the U.S. concentrates on incentives for reaching CO2 goals, European airlines complain about the EU's focus on mandates. (Photo: Fraport)
While the U.S. concentrates on incentives for reaching CO2 goals, European airlines complain about the EU's focus on mandates. (Photo: Fraport)

Europe’s airlines increasingly have expressed worry that environmental regulations and their resulting costs will hinder the sector’s competitiveness and, ultimately, its decarbonization efforts.

Their concerns stem largely from elements of the European Green Deal, under which the European Commission has actively developed policies in the areas of energy, transport, and taxation with the objective of achieving climate neutrality for the European Union (EU) by 2050. Among its arsenal of initiatives, the “Fit for 55” package consists of a set of legislative proposals designed to curb net carbon dioxide emissions by at least 55 percent by 2030 compared with the levels recorded in 1990.