So sensitive has the civil aviation sector been to accusations as the environment polluter that it is increasingly launching research programmes and taking all possible steps to bring about reduction in the rate of fuel burn to ensure greener aviation

Worldwide, the aviation sector has always been at the receiving end as the main culprit for causing environmental imbalances leading to ‘global warming’, even though it produces only a fraction of the greenhouse gas (GHG) with adverse effect on the earth’s environment. At the turn of the century, the Inter-governmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) reported that, globally, directly fuelled transportation accounted for 14 per cent of carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions into the atmosphere, but overall, aviation—all of it—accounted for just two per cent. The alarmists did revise this figure to around five per cent later on, but it is evident that culpability quotient of the aviation sector remained miniscule compared to the bigger defaulters such as surface transportation and the industry.

Whatever the case may be, it goes to the credit of the aviation sector which responded whole-heartedly to the challenges of global warming, by developing improved airframe/engine designs, to achieve time-bound targeted fuel efficiencies. There has been concerted effort both by the airframe as well as aero-engine manufacturers to redefine their strategies to bring about the necessary improvements. But the quest for ‘greener’ aviation does not end here. There are other related fields requiring concerted efforts, such as perfecting air traffic management to save fuel and also intensifying efforts to search for alternative fuels which give better thermal efficiencies and reduce ‘emissions’.

Civil Aviation: On the Fast Track

So sensitive has the civil aviation sector been to accusations as the environment polluter that it is increasingly launching research programmes and taking all possible steps to bring about reduction in the rate of fuel burn to ensure greener aviation. Airbus, for example, is promising up to 15 per cent fuel-burn improvement in its ‘neo’ (new engine option) featuring the Pratt & Whitney PW1000G PurePower high-bypass GTF (geared turbofan) engine as the lead development engine — due to enter service in 2015 (the Indian LCC IndiGo has ordered these in substantial numbers) — and CFM International’s Leap-X as an alternative. Delving in research involving composite materials, next-generation 3D aerodynamics and improved combustion techniques, the CFM engineers are hopeful of the Leap-X turbofan engine (certification likely in 2016) will produce 60 per cent less nitrous oxide (NO_X) and 16 per cent less CO₂ than the present generation CFM56 engine.

In fact, there is no dearth of new initiatives being taken on both sides of the Atlantic to meet the ‘green aviation’ challenges that encompass all aviation-related areas and activities. For instance, the European Union (EU) has launched the ‘Clean Sky’ joint technology initiative which is focused on accelerating the development of breakthrough technologies to reduce aviation’s environmental impact. The publicprivate partnership (PPP) initiative encompasses some 86 organisations in 16 countries along with 54 manufacturers, including all leading European aviation companies, plus 15 research centres and 17 universities. Clean Sky is currently working on integrated technology demonstrators such as smart fixed-wing aircraft, green regional aircraft, green rotorcraft, sustainable and green engines, systems for green operations and eco-designs. Single European Sky Air Traffic Management Research (SESAR) is another EU’s Euro 30 billion air traffic management modernisation programme, the implementation of which would ensure more efficient air traffic control, shorter routings and fewer delays and is estimated to save 16 million tonnes of CO₂ in a year.

In the US, NASA launched National Plan for Aeronautics Research and Development, which aims to reduce fuel consumption, explore alternative fuels, and research technologies and operational procedures for reducing energy consumption, noise and emissions. Then there is the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) ‘NextGen’ programme to totally transform the entire American air traffic control system. The FAA portfolio consists of seven solution sets, each focusing on a series of related operational changes. These include, trajectory based operations (TBO); high density (HD) airports; flexible terminals and airports (FLEX); collaborative air traffic management (CATM); reduction of weather impact (RWI); safety, security and environment (SSE); and terminal facilities. Comparable to SESAR in Europe, the latest FAA estimates reveal that by 2018, NextGen will be able to generate $22 billion ( Rs. 99,000 crore) in cumulative benefits in the civil aviation sector, save more than seven billion litres of fuel and cut CO₂ emissions by nearly 14 million tonnes. But are all the impressive steps being taken to address the environmental issues confined only to the civil sector in aviation?