Dutch airline KLM calls for people to fly less
Dutch airline KLM has launched a campaign asking people to fly less. The video and open letter from CEO Pieter Elbers asks: “Do you always have to meet face-to-face?” and “Could you take the train instead?” The campaign aims to encourage travellers and the aviation industry to consider the environmental impact of flying. It describes the “shared responsibility” of travellers and airlines to “fly more responsibly”, and says those in the industry need to “create a sustainable future for aviation”. The aviation industry accounts for an estimated 2%-3% of the manmade CO2 emissions in the world – a figure that is expected to increase with growing population, trade and wealth. KLM’s message comes at a time when the flight-shaming movement is becoming more influential and there is a rise in holidays by rail. Airline passenger growth is also at its lowest in more than three years, according to a traffic report by European airport trade association Airports Council International Europe. The KLM campaign, which marks the airline’s 100th anniversary, calls on passengers to consider train travel for shorter distances and to replace face-to-face meetings with video calls. It also suggests packing lightly to reduce baggage weight so that planes uses less fuel, and to consider offsetting CO2 emissions. The airline’s carbon-offset programme uses passenger contributions for reforestation projects, including a new tropical forest in Panama. However, critics have suggested that instead of asking the public to be aware of their actions, KLM, and other airlines, need to be considering solutions that lie with the industry itself. <br/>
https://portal.staralliance.com/cms/news/hot-topics/2019-07-12/sky/dutch-airline-klm-calls-for-people-to-fly-less
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Dutch airline KLM calls for people to fly less
Dutch airline KLM has launched a campaign asking people to fly less. The video and open letter from CEO Pieter Elbers asks: “Do you always have to meet face-to-face?” and “Could you take the train instead?” The campaign aims to encourage travellers and the aviation industry to consider the environmental impact of flying. It describes the “shared responsibility” of travellers and airlines to “fly more responsibly”, and says those in the industry need to “create a sustainable future for aviation”. The aviation industry accounts for an estimated 2%-3% of the manmade CO2 emissions in the world – a figure that is expected to increase with growing population, trade and wealth. KLM’s message comes at a time when the flight-shaming movement is becoming more influential and there is a rise in holidays by rail. Airline passenger growth is also at its lowest in more than three years, according to a traffic report by European airport trade association Airports Council International Europe. The KLM campaign, which marks the airline’s 100th anniversary, calls on passengers to consider train travel for shorter distances and to replace face-to-face meetings with video calls. It also suggests packing lightly to reduce baggage weight so that planes uses less fuel, and to consider offsetting CO2 emissions. The airline’s carbon-offset programme uses passenger contributions for reforestation projects, including a new tropical forest in Panama. However, critics have suggested that instead of asking the public to be aware of their actions, KLM, and other airlines, need to be considering solutions that lie with the industry itself. <br/>
