EU research programme targets airline emissions

The EU aviation industry is to be offered help from a multi-million euro project to cut noise and emissions, to be proposed by the European Commission next Wednesday (13 June).

The ‘Clean Sky’ Joint Technology Initiative (JTI) is expected to pay for research into engine improvements and fuel efficiency, as well as for cleaner and quieter flight test vehicles.

JTI will run until 2013 and will be funded by industry contributions and money from the Commission’s seventh framework programme for research (FP7).

The Commission estimates that the total budget will be about €1.7 billion.

Increasing concerns over climate change and rising carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions have turned the spotlight on aviation.

Global flights today are thought to account for 2% of all CO2 emissions.

Aviation is also a source of pollutants including volatile organic compounds (VOCs), nitrogen oxides (NOx) and carbon monoxide (CO), all of which have been linked to health problems.

The JTI follows a 2002 Strategic Research Agenda for aeronautics, which set goals for the sector to reach by 2020. These included a 50% reduction in CO2 emissions, an 80% reduction in NOx emissions and a 50% noise reduction.

Clean Sky is one of six JTIs to be proposed under FP7.

JTIs on computer technology and medicines were proposed last month.

The EU aviation industry is to be offered help from a multi-million euro project to cut noise and emissions, to be proposed by the European Commission next Wednesday (13 June).