Business / Loganair looks to go green with ambitious plan to become carbon neutral
LOGANAIR is to add a £1 carbon offset charge to all fares as of 1 July as part of plans to become carbon neutral by 2040.
The company is the first regional carrier in the UK to make such a charge mandatory.
The funds collected will go towards a programme of carbon offset measures to remove the same amount of carbon from the environment as has been generated from each Loganair flight.
These include initiatives such as reforestation projects and wind farms that will replace carbon-heavy coal and gas-fired power stations.
At the same time, the airline is tackling the long-term goal of introducing sustainable aircraft into its fleet, all part of its GreenSkies programme.
Live trials of the ZeroAvia and Ampaire programmes are taking place in Orkney this summer on developmental aircraft powered by hydrogen and renewable electricity.
Loganair said it is confident it can fully convert its fleet to net zero carbon emissions over the next 20 years.
Chief executive Jonathan Hinkles said the company was taking an active role in reducing its carbon footprint.
“We are extremely proud to be the first UK regional airline to set ambitious goals for a carbon-neutral future,” he said.
“The entire transport industry has a huge task ahead to address and reduce emissions from every form of travel, and it’s our responsibility as the UK’s largest regional airline to lead the way.
“The technology required to deliver zero-carbon regional flights is still under development and testing today. Until they’re ready for use more widely though, we’ll be mitigating the carbon emissions from every Loganair flight through the new offset programme and taking all of the steps that we safely and reasonably can to reduce those carbon emissions in the first place.
“We think it’s right to ask our customers to join us on this journey to carbon neutrality, and the £1 GreenSkies charge within Loganair’s ticket prices means that we can immediately mitigate the impact of the carbon emissions from every flight.
“We want our customers to understand just how committed we are to highlighting the need to recognise the impact of each journey – and how a small change for all of us can quickly make a big difference overall.”
Scotland’s cabinet secretary for net zero, energy and transport Michael Matheson said: “The Scottish Government looks forward to working with Loganair to deliver on our commitment of decarbonising scheduled flights within Scotland by 2040.”
“Loganair’s involvement in the aircraft trials, taking place at the Sustainable Aviation Test Environment in Orkney, is also a great example of how our ownership of Highlands and Islands Airports Ltd creates a unique opportunity for Scotland to lead the drive towards zero emission aviation.”
Later this year, Loganair said it will establish a new fund to provide grants to help with the cost of establishing renewable energy projects in the communities that it serves.
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