For further information, contact Inês at Stay Grounded, +43 670 353 43 11, press@stay-grounded.org
On the first day of the 54th edition of the Paris Air Show, French groups issued a statement calling on the event to stop their climate denial and take the necessary steps towards a necessary reduction of air traffic.
The statement, signed by 14 climate and environmental justice groups, makes it clear that the solutions highlighted by the industry – technological advances that would make it possible to improve the energy efficiency of aircrafts in order to reduce their consumption and sustainable aviation fuels (SAF) – are not sufficient and a reduction in air traffic is necessary.
The statement, signed by groups including Greenpeace and Scientifiques en rébellion, says: “Representatives of the aviation sector and policy-makers can deny it and continue to give their groundless speeches during the Paris Air Show in front of the 2,700 journalists expected to attend, but this will not change the reality: without reducing air traffic, we will not be able to sufficiently reduce the sector’s emissions, or noise and atmospheric pollution, within the required timeframe.”
“The disregard of the sector, like Airbus and Boeing who aim to double the number of planes in service by 2045, prevents any planning ahead, while each year’s delay increases the vulnerability of the sector’s employees.”
In the past 30 years the aviation industry’s emissions have doubled and now account for 7% of France’s CO2 emissions. This is before the non-CO2 effects of aviation are taken into consideration, notably condensation trails, which at least double the industry’s impact on the climate. The exponential growth in air traffic is having a serious impact on the health and quality of life of the huge numbers of people living near airports.
The statement goes on to say: “The real question is no longer whether air traffic should be reduced, but how to do it in a way that is fair and consistent with the climate and health challenges.”
Lounes Dupeux, Campaigner at Stay Grounded, takes the subject even further: “The Paris Air Show is the pinnacle of climate denial. While communities on the frontlines of the climate crisis deal with floods and droughts a small bunch of privileged industry executives fawn over ridiculous ideas like air taxis that serve no-one but the ultra-rich.
“Executives at the Paris Air Show 2023 are once again trying to greenwash us by solely focusing the conversation on technological solutions. They cannot be trusted.”
“This is an attempt to distract us from the real solutions, like an end to subsidies for the aviation sector, the reduction of air traffic, and establishing secure jobs for aviation workers to transition out of the industry. These are easy solutions that would lay the tracks for a better, more fair world.”
The 2023 Paris Air Show is the world’s largest trade fair for the aerospace-industry, and runs from Monday 19th to Sunday 25th June.
NOTES FOR EDITORS:
- Read the full statement here.