Aircraft CO2 emissions

Since 1 January 2020, new aircraft types have to comply with a new type CO₂ standard,³ although no aircraft has been certified against this standard as of the start of 2025. The focus thus far has been on certifying in-production aircraft types against a less stringent in-production CO₂ standard as all aircraft have to be certified against this new requirement if they wish to continue to be produced beyond 1 January 2028.

As of the end of 2024, Airbus continues to be the only manufacturer to have certified in-production aircraft types, such as the A330-800neo and -900neo variants (

), and so the availability of certified CO₂ data remains limited

[7]

. In light of the approaching production cut-off deadline in 2028, certification of other aircraft types is ongoing by EASA and other regions of the world have also implemented the CO₂ standard into their legislation with it becoming effective in the US on 16 April 2024. As per noise, the 2019 ICAO Independent Experts Panel goals for leading edge CO₂ emissions performance in 2027 and 2037 would need to be reviewed soon for them to remain relevant.

ICAO dual Noise / CO₂ standard setting

icao

A revision of the ICAO Annex 16 standards for aircraft noise and CO₂ emissions is currently being considered by the ICAO Committee on Aviation Environmental Protection (CAEP). This is the first time that CAEP standard setting has reviewed two standards at the same time in the form of an integrated dual stringency process taking into account design trade-offs at the aircraft level. The environmental benefits and associated costs of a broad range of options for more stringent new type standards have been assessed for an applicability date in the next 5 years. A recommendation by CAEP on new noise and CO₂ limits is due at the CAEP/13 meeting in February 2025.

Considering the long-term development and in-service timescales of new aircraft types, it will be important to set an updated new type CO₂ standard that will influence the fuel efficiency of future designs and effectively contribute to the ICAO Long-Term Aspirational Goal of net zero carbon emissions from international aviation by 2050

[8]

³ ICAO Annex 16 Volume III contains international aircraft CO₂ standards. The CO₂ metric is a specific air range based metric (kg fuel per km flown in cruise) adjusted to take into account fuselage size.

Aircraft CO₂ emissions

Published in collaboration with