Lufthansa to charge customers to flaunt green credentials

Airlines have long found innovative ways to charge passengers for services like seat selection, priority boarding, checked bags and even carry-ons. Lufthansa is taking it to the next level: the German airline group is working on a new rewards plan to coax customers into paying for its effort to clean up greenhouse-gas emissions, tapping into their desire to be seen as environmentally conscious. For a price, travelers will be able to demonstrate support for alternative jet fuels or carbon-offset purchases. The effectiveness of these measures has been challenged, but for now airlines have few other options to show passengers they’re trying to make a start on lowering carbon output. Lufthansa is considering everything from marking seats green to creating digital badges that can be shown on a phone. “We do think the eco-conscious traveler wants people to know that they’re an eco-conscious traveler,” Chief Customer Officer Christina Foerster said. “It needs to be chic to show off you’re flying green.” Airlines face a challenge in shifting onto travelers a bigger share of the potential $2 trillion industrywide cost of reaching carbon neutrality by 2050. Lufthansa and other carriers already offer customers ways to pay extra for emissions, but just 1% pitch in. Increasing the use of sustainable aviation fuels is likely to raise airline ticket prices, United CEO Scott Kirby said at the COP26 climate conference. “That’s the way it should be,” Kirby said. “Ticket prices should be a little higher to offset the impact on the environment.” While the fuel should eventually become cheaper, in the medium-term the cost will be high, he said. <br/>