Turning "Green:" The Airline Industry Become More Environmentally-Conscious

At the Paris Air Show this week, in the effort to better publicize its efforts to be part of an environmentally-conscious industry, Airbus showed an image of dolphins, rain forests, and fishing boats on a misty pond. The company's CEO said, at a press conference, that Airbus is "saving the planet, one A380 at a time." Advanced fuel-saving aerodynamic design, including wingtip fences and an all new lighter cabin help reduce fuel burn, making the A320 amily the most environmentally friendly single aisle aircraft in operation.

All across Le Bourget Airport at the industry's largest trade show, airline and aerospace comapnies are showing that when it comes to saving the environment, they understand and are acting on it. They are talking about hard-earned environmental advanced and new initiatives.

Airlines and aircraft manufacturers can demonstrate that they have dramatically inproved their environmental performance. Each generation of new aircraft and engines has polluted significantly less than its predecessors. Boeing says that since the jet age began, the industry has reduced engine noise by an average of 30 decibels and fuel consumption by over 70%.

The companies are sincere in their efforts. Both Boeing and Airbus are now designing planes to cut fuel consumption even mroe, estimated to be as much as 20%. Good examples are the Boeing 787 Dreamliner and the Airbus A350. Air France-KLM also noted that their new Boeing aircraft cuts carbon-dioxide emissions by 20%. And Pratt & Whittney, which builds engines for jet aircraft, boasted that the number of metric tons of carbon dioxide the fuel-efficient engine could save would be the equivalent of what would be consumed by a "mature forest the size of Belgium."