Airbus and Air France-KLM have urged policymakers to use EU-backed green stimulus funds to support aircraft sales, according to documents released on Thursday by InfluenceMap, an investor-led climate lobbying watchdog. In papers and presentations to officials including European Commission Vice-President Frans Timmermans’ staff, the companies argued that taxpayer-funded incentives on current plane models could cut emissions by retiring more older, less efficient jets. “Support could take the form of a ‘green stimulus’ subsidy scheme,” according to an Air France-KLM “key messages” digest dated March 26. The airline group declined to comment. The Airbus and Air France-KLM documents are part of a set including emails, letters and position papers obtained under freedom of information rules by InfluenceMap, which says they reveal resistance to EU climate policies that is sometimes at odds with the industry’s public pledges. The region’s aviation sector vowed in February to target net zero carbon emissions in 2050. In the near term, an Airbus spokesperson said, emissions could be reduced with “financing support for airlines to retire older, less environmentally friendly aircraft early and replace them with new fuel-efficient aircraft.” The disclosures come as investors increasingly press carbon-intensive industries for transparency about their lobbying on climate issues. InfluenceMap provides research to Climate Action 100+, whose 575 members manage $54t in assets.<br/>
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Travel recovery in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic is uneven as nations vary in their progress vaccinating against the disease yet stagnant demand in some regions may be offset by returning demand in others, KLM Royal Dutch Airlines CE Pieter Elbers predicts. International travel is uncertain amid the restrictions set by different nations aimed at halting the spread of Covid-19 yet government co-operation can accelerate recovery, Elbers said on 8 June during a virtual discussion hosted by the International Aviation Club of Washington DC. The latest forecast by air traffic manager Eurocontrol states that air travel in Europe “is not expected to reach 2019 levels until 2024 at the earliest”, which makes Elbers sceptical. “I would have difficulty saying it’s going to take years,” Elbers says of international recovery, adding that “there are going to be some specific parts that will take longer”. “I would see no reason why Europe and India would take four years to come back,” he says of that international route network. The first priority should be to reopen travel between the European Union and the USA, he says, and then “other nations will follow”.<br/>
Garuda Indonesia has shed more light on its operating circumstances, including on the skeletal fleet it is operating amid the coronavirus pandemic, as well as measures taken to cut costs. A 9 June stock exchange filing shows that the carrier has operated up to only a third of its fleet during the pandemic, as demand collapsed amid global travel restrictions. It has also hinted at possibly returning a signficant number of aircraft to lessors. The embattled flag carrier — the subject of an imminent restructuring — was responding to queries listed by the Indonesian stock exchange. While Garuda’s total fleet size stands at 142 aircraft, it only operated up to 53 jets — representing a 63% reduction. Among the varied aircraft types it operates, its fleet of Boeing 737-800s saw the steepest decline — from a pre-pandemic fleet of 73 examples to just 27 jets, a cut of 63%. Other aircraft with significant cuts include its regional fleet of CRJ1000s, from 18 to just three in service, as well as ATR 72-600s, which went from 13 jets to five in service currently. Garuda also disclosed that 39 aircraft are in maintenance, though it did not elaborate further. <br/>