While the aviation industry has made progress toward achieving net-zero flying by 2050, the path forward will be complex. As of April, 25 airlines and 18 aerospace and defense companies have committed to setting or have set emissions goals related to the Science Based Targets initiative. Partners Axel Esqué and Robin Riedel and colleagues find that fuel efficiency, one key metric for judging progress, improved by approximately 39 percent from 2005 to 2019, yet the absolute growth of emissions is larger than efficiency gains by far.
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Four bar graphs are presented in 2 pairs, illustrating the progression of the Science Based Targets initiative, aligned to climate goals, for airlines and for aerospace and defense companies, from 2020–23. The first pair shows, on the left, the number of airlines committed or setting targets aligned with climate goals, from 4 in 2020 to 25 in 2023. The graph on the right displays airlines’ share of global passenger traffic, which increased from 5% in 2020 to 31% by 2023. The second pair shows, on the left, an increase in the number of aerospace and defense companies that set or committed to climate-aligned targets, with 1 in 2020 and 18 by 2023. The second graph indicates the growth of these companies’ contributions to the 2021 sector revenues—from less than 1% in 2020 to 22% by 2023. Footnote 1: The listed aerospace and defense companies include only those categorized as such, excluding those that opted for different categories in SBTi reporting. Footnote 2: The 2020 data incorporate data collected in 2020 and earlier years. Footnote 3: The 2023 data refer to data collected as of May 2023. Source: “Companies taking action,” Science Based Targets, accessed Mar 2023; IATA Top 200 Airlines; McKinsey Aerospace and Defense Sector Value Pool analysis; McKinsey Corporate Performance Analytics (CPA); McKinsey analysis.
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To read the article, see “Decarbonizing aviation: Executing on net-zero goals,” June 16, 2023.