BA to offset domestic flight emissions from next year

BA will offset all domestic flight emissions from next year, after its owner IAG became the first airline group to commit to net-zero carbon flying by 2050. IAG’s CE, Willie Walsh, said that the company would reach the net-zero target largely through offsetting but pledged its airlines, including Aer Lingus and Iberia, would also substantially reduce emissions through sustainable fuels and replacing older aircraft. Walsh said offsetting was the only way aviation could promise to carbon net zero and that electric or hydrogen planes would not be an option for most international flights. Offsetting allows companies to invest in environmental projects to balance out their own carbon footprints but it has been criticised as a get-out clause for highly polluting businesses. Walsh said: “We will continue to use a carbon-based fuel throughout. We don’t see a credible alternative. It’s going to be some time until we see an electric or hybrid-electric plane … you’re looking at smaller aircraft capable of flying up to 150 passengers up to 1,000km. The technology to cover the entire network is some time away.” However, he argued that aviation offsetting would invest in regulated, verified carbon-reduction schemes, whereas levies on flying would disappear into general taxation. He said: “In the past there have been concerns about the schemes. It’s very clear that any offsetting scheme has to be a permanent reduction in CO2, and verifiable.”<br/>