The higher the demand for flights, the more often planes fly, the more it stimulates the development of new technologies and allows the future of aviation to rest on the principles of sustainable development, says Mikhail Alenkin, founder and CEO of ArcosJet.

All air transport today accounts for 2.5% of the world’s carbon dioxide emissions. While quite significant, this figure is not at all proportional to the attention that the media and eco-activists have been giving to aviation in this regard.

The target of most of that criticism and protests is business aviation; accessible to a very limited number of people, it is thus very vulnerable to superficial condemnation. Need we say that this segment, in turn, accounts for only 2% of all aviation emissions, while its contribution to the economies of various countries is very significant? Much has already been said about this – and by many.

But moving from criticism to constructiveness, what else underpins the development of the airline industry but the trivial demand for transport? We want to travel comfortably, safely, and, most importantly, quickly. Objectively, assuming that individuals or businesses can hardly afford to completely abandon flight, development of new technologies remains the only option for reducing environmental damage from aviation.

We have already seen big changes over the last decade: SAF, new engines that cut carbon dioxide emissions by 20-25%, improved aircraft aerodynamics and development of new aerodynamic designs, testing of electric engines and hydrogen generators, eVTOL technologies. The industry is already working to reduce its impact on the environment. As it turns out, it is the demand for aviation, which also drives the demand for new aircraft, that is driving manufacturers to invest in new technologies to reduce these emissions as well. However, the investments and costs in this domain are significant.

And we as passengers need to be aware that our desire to spend as little as possible on our flights and the need to invest in sustainability technology are in fact in conflict with each other. Investing in such technology is out of the question if the expected cost of a ticket or flight as a whole barely pays for the actual cost of the flight.

As users of aviation services, it is important for us to understand today that our money, the money of passengers, ultimately goes towards the sustainable future of this crucial part of the global transport system. No doubt, the carbon footprint of a business jet passenger is significantly higher than that of a commercial flyer, but they both ultimately vote for new technology according to the size of their wallet. This is how we, each of us, drive the development and improvement of the aviation industry and make a personal contribution to our shared sustainable future on the planet.