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Industry experts came together at the Airlines 2024 event in London this week. It was first Airlines conference to be held since the new government was installed.
Sir Richard Branson is fighting to keep the remaining bars in Virgin Atlantic's A330 and Boeing787 fleet (Credit: Virgin Atlantic)
On-stage discussions focused on UK competitiveness, net zero issues, artificial intelligence (AI) and the crucial question of whether Virgin Atlantic would keep a pivotal feature of its in-flight experience.
Here are some of the key takeaways from the day.
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Iata’s chief economist and sustainability guru Marie Owens Thomsen put investment needed for SAF production at $2-3 trillion. She pointed out investment in solar power between 2004 and 2022 reached $2.9 trillion, and in wind power, $2.4 trillion, with significant progress achieved. “We have wind and solar, they did it,” she said, adding this should be encouraging for the sustainable fuels sector. “The numbers are very similar, so we should not feel intimidated.” However, she warned: “SAF is a very embryonic market. By 2050 we will need more than 500 million tonnes, so we need to increase production by a factor of 1,000.”
Department for Transport research found 70% of young people had little or no idea what a career in aviation meant, while according to internet sensation Mohammad Taher, aka The Airport Guy and the DfT’s Aviation Ambassador, 51% of industry staff are over 45. Taher is on a mission to help young people secure jobs in the industry and has just signed a deal with Manchester Airports Group. “The idea is we take the aviation industry and place it in the palm of the hands of the next generation,” he said.
Google outlined how AI is the next big thing in travel. Google’s senior industry manager (travel) Yanina Belen Vidal said the internet had been followed by mobile technology and was now facing a third revolution. “We think it’s as big as the internet and mobile,” she said. She quoted a report by management consultants McKinsey which said airlines that failed to adopt AI “will lose up to 20% of revenue”. She also said Google’s traffic was now 70% by way of mobile usage.
The airline’s chief executive Shai Weiss said the debate had begun about whether to remove the remaining bars from the airline’s Airbus A330 and Boeing 787 fleet. Newer aircraft have The Loft and The Booth social spaces. Some, including the airline’s founder Sir Richard Branson, want to keep bars, while others see every centimetre of space as a revenue opportunity. Meanwhile Virgin has signalled it is open to returning to Gatwick.
The Taskforce replaces the old Jet Zero Council set up under the previous government to develop sustainable aviation fuels (SAF) and reduce carbon emissions. The difference, transport secretary Louise Haigh insists, is the new body will have broader input from government departments, with business and trade secretary Jonathan Reynolds and energy, security and net zero secretary Ed Miliband now members. Haigh said this meant the new body was not just “a large talking shop”.
With the government signalling it is happy for airports to expand provided they meet economic and environmental commitments, the stage is set for a 2025 announcement about a third Heathrow runway. Heathrow boss Thomas Woldbye needs to be convinced airlines want it, saying: “What supermarket puts products on the shelves nobody wants to buy? It is not for Heathrow to decide, we need to have final agreement all round saying this is the project we want.”
