Airplane Emissions and Air Travel Carbon Footprint

Dec 21, 2020

In this day and age, climate change and global warming is a hot topic that is always being mentioned on the news and in social media. People are becoming more aware of their carbon footprint and are doing things to reduce, reuse, and recycle if efforts do their part for the environment.

Article Contents

Airplane Emissions: What is the Carbon Footprint of Air Travel?
Flying vs. Driving or Train vs. Plane: What is the carbon footprint of a car vs a plane?

With the trend of people trying to do their best for the environment, people are becoming more aware of the pollution they are contributing when they travel on vacation or too and from work. People are going out of their way to buy more energy-efficient cars, invest in solar panels for their houses, and even consider the most efficient way to travel that is cost-effective and does not have an impact on the environment.

Below, you'll read facts and statistics about air travel emissions, air travel carbon footprint, and other factors that are associated with CO2.

Statistics (Editors Picks)

Around 2% of all human-induced carbon dioxide (CO2) is produced by the global aviation industry.
Road transport is responsible for 74% of carbon emissions compared to 12% of the aviation industry.
The average occupancy of an aircraft is 82% which is greater than all other forms of transport.
Flight emissions stay in the atmosphere and will warm it for several centuries.
Aircraft emissions are released high in the atmosphere and cause potent climate impact by triggering chemical reactions and atmospheric effects that heat the planet.
Carbon Footprint is defined as the amount of greenhouse gases (GHGs) and specifically carbon dioxide emitted by something during a given period of time.
A plane produces a little over 53 pounds of carbon dioxide (CO2) per mile on average.
Airplane cruising speed (an average of 484.67 mph) generates emissions of 198 lbs of carbon dioxide (CO2) per hour
Aviation fuel emissions are 3.15 lbs of carbon dioxide (CO2) lbs of fuel.
CO2 emissions from a Boeing 737-400 plane are 0.40 lbs / mile per passenger.
The Bureau of Transportation Statistics showed that Amtrak used 27% less fuel than domestic flights per-passenger mile traveled
An intercity gets nearly 57 passenger-miles per gallon versus cars that get about 40 gallons per mile according to the United States Department of Energy
What is a greener alternative to traveling long distances? Assuming that your travel craft is fully booked, a diesel bus would be first, then a high-speed train, a car with three people in it, and finally a medium-sized aircraft.
If traveling alone, driving may sound like a greener approach to flying. However, you roughly double a trip’s CO2 emissions if you drive across the country instead of flying. Taking a train would cut emissions in half compared to a plane

Airplane Emissions

What is the Carbon Footprint of Air Travel?

The global aviation industry produced around 2% of all human-induced carbon dioxide (CO2). 12% of all carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions are due to all aviation transport. On average a plane produces a little over 53 lbs of carbon dioxide per mile. Broken down, aviation fuel emissions are .0069 lbs of carbon dioxide (CO2) per .0022 lbs of fuel. A cruising speed of 780km per hour (484.67 mph) would generate emissions of 90 kg (198 lbs) per hour. That may sound like a lot of CO2 emissions, and it is. However, when compared to traveling by car, aircraft are usually 82% occupied.

Key Statistics

Around 2% of all human-induced carbon dioxide (CO2) is produced by the global aviation industry.
Road transport is responsible for 74% of carbon emissions compared to 12% of the aviation industry.
The average occupancy of an aircraft is 82% which is greater than all other forms of transport.
Flight emissions stay in the atmosphere and will warm it for several centuries.
Aircraft emissions are released high in the atmosphere and cause potent climate impact by triggering chemical reactions and atmospheric effects that eat the planet.
Carbon Footprint is defined as the amount of greenhouse gases (GHGs) and specifically carbon dioxide emitted by something during a given period of time.
A plane produces a little over 53 pounds of carbon dioxide (CO2) per mile on average.
Aviation fuel emissions are 3.15 lbs of carbon dioxide (CO2) per lb of fuel.
CO2 emissions from a Boeing 737-400 plane are 0.40 lbs / mile per passenger.
Airplane cruising speed (an average of 484.67 mph) generates emissions of 198 lbs of carbon dioxide (CO2) per hour

Sources

Flying vs. Driving or Train vs. Plane

What is the Carbon Footprint of a Car vs a Plane?

Debates about air pollution, global warming, and CO2 emissions have been the zeitgeist in recent years. People have been more concerned about their carbon footprint that they have been taking steps to reduce it and have gone as far as to change their lifestyle, shopping, and eating habits to do their part for the environment. Which brings up the debate, what is the greener approach to traveling? Is it flying vs driving? Train vs plan? Of car vs plane? Well, it really depends on different factors such as how many people are traveling, the distance being traveled, and what transportation method is being used. It was discovered that Amtrak used 27% less fuel than domestic flights per-passenger mile traveled. That means an intercity train gets nearly 57 passenger-miles per gallon. To put in order all the greener approaches to travel, assuming all the travel crafts are fully booked, first would be a diesel bus, then a high-speed train, a car with three people in it and finally a plane.

A lot of people think that driving would be a greener approach to travel in comparison to a plane. However, that's not always the case. Assuming that one would have to travel cross country a car would roughly double CO2 emissions compared to the plane. If one took a plane instead, it would be half of that plane. Which would make sense, a car idling in traffic would be releasing more CO2 in the environment vs a plane. Also, cars are hardly ever full in comparison to a plane which can fly out at 82% capacity.

Key Statistics

The Bureau of Transportation Statistics showed that Amtrak used 27% less fuel than domestic flights per-passenger mile traveled
An intercity train gets nearly 57 passenger-miles per gallon versus cars that get about 40 gallons per mile according to the United States Department of Energy
Assuming that your travel craft is fully booked, a diesel bus would be first, then a high-speed train, a car with three people in it, and finally a medium-sized aircraft.
Driving may sound like a greener approach to flying, however, you roughly double a trip’s CO2 emissions if you drive across the country instead of flying. Taking a train would cut emissions in half compared to a plane.
How to help in cutting your carbon footprint?
- Take longer vacations!
- Fly economy/ a full plane
- Public transportation instead of a cab
- Turn off and unplug electronics while out
CO2 emissions according to the European Environment Agency Report (Per passenger/km).
- Train: 14g/km/passenger CO2 (0.048 lbs/mile/passenger)
- Small Car: 42g/km/passenger CO2 (0.19 lbs/mile/passenger)
- Average Car: 55g/km/passenger CO2 (0.19 lbs/mile/passenger)
- Bus: 68g/km/passenger CO2 (0.24 lbs/mile/passenger)
- Two-Wheel Motor: 72g/km/passenger CO2 (25.8 lbs/mile/passenger)
- Plane: 285g/km/passenger CO2 (1.01 lbs/mile/passenger)

Sources

Conclusion

It's comforting to know that people are aware of the effects of CO2 and global warming and are actively taking approaches to do their part in helping the environment. While flying does release 2% of the global CO2 emissions, it still is a better option than to drive cross country, as a car's emissions can add up to more than that of a plane. So, how can you help to reduce your carbon footprint when traveling? Taking a fully booked economy flight instead of driving, taking public transportation instead of driving, and making sure that all electronics are off and unplugged while out are all great ways to better help the environment while on vacation. Also, taking a longer vacation is better for the environment as well!