Post-COVID19 sustainable aviation: the limits of the all-in bet on technology.

Keywords: Aviation, Air Transport, COVID-19, Sustainability, Technology
Session Type: Virtual Paper Abstract
Day: Saturday
Session Start / End Time: 2/26/2022 05:20 PM (Eastern Time (US & Canada)) - 2/26/2022 06:40 PM (Eastern Time (US & Canada))
Room: Virtual 11

Abstract

The crisis generated by the COVID-19 outbreak has become the most intense and long-lasting in the history of commercial aviation. Early academic assessments on the impact of the outbreak have identified changes in the way airlines run their business and supply the needs of customers, as well as significant changes in the travel behaviour of consumers, particularly corporate travellers. As a response to these structural changes and to support the re-birth of airlines, key industry actors are aligning their efforts to achieve a more sustainable aviation and a net zero CO2 industry by 2050. In that regard, technology has traditionally been seen as a key driver of airline business model evolution. However, the current industry bet on technology, as the main support for the transformation of the industry towards net zero emissions, has limits and may constrain the incentives to transform the business model more radically and increase their chances of survival and growth. Ignoring aspects such as environmental reputation and demand management, and opposing economic measures and modal shift policies, could potentially take the airline industry to an unsustainable path similar to the pre-COVID-19 times.