Aviation’s answer to climate change

A desire to fly versus environmental guilt?

Photo by Arno Senoner on Unsplash

This is clearly a hangover to last week’s letter and my continuing regret about flying to America. What a selfish little turncoat I turned out to be.

My birch stick flagellation has at last produced something more helpful, as I explore what the aviation industry is doing to resolve climate change?

I’m grateful to a podcast transcription from the New York Times, sponsored by British Petroleum, which covers an interview with Willie Walsh, Director General of the International Air Transport Association (IATA) and Nicolas Chretien, Head of Sustainability and Environment at Airbus.

Willie Walsh, don’t I know him?

Originally a pilot for Aer Lingus, he quickly became an active union member of the Irish Airline Pilots’ Association (IALPA). His meteoric rise to Chief Executive saw a switching of sides, to solve Aer Lingus’ loss making business. He axed 2,500 jobs.

He’s more famous for trying to do the same at British Airways, hacking away costs at another heavily unionised carrier. He was accused of going too far during a 2017, Bank Holiday IT meltdown at Heathrow’s Terminal 5. It stranded many passengers and had…