easyJet: High time for UK to implement airspace programme

Guest blog from easyJet on the need for airspace modernisation

Airspace modernisation is the quickest way to reduce carbon emissions.

As we’ve seen with IRIS, the advancement of flight navigation technologies is such that we could be achieving huge emissions reductions almost right away.

Unfortunately, the navigational corridors we use today have seen little development since their establishment in the 1950s. These corridors were based around technologies that are now obsolete.

The lack of modernisation means we are not able to capitalise on modern technology – so the inefficient climb and descent paths, unnecessary changes of flightpath when crossing borders and circuitous routings that follow historic waypoints continue to cause widespread inefficiencies across the industry.

Part of the issue is that it is often difficult to articulate the impact that airspace restrictions have on airlines. To clearly show what airspace modernisation could achieve, our easyJet Flight Efficiencies team have created an algorithm to analyse every single flight plan, pinpointing where the greatest inefficiencies occur across our network.

And our results show definitively that easyJet alone could achieve efficiency gains of over 10%, just through modernising some airspace. EasyJet accounts for around 10% of all European flights, so if this was applied across the whole industry you can see just how transformational it could be. In fact, we estimate it could help eliminate 18m tonnes of CO2 from European skies every year.

Airspace modernisation could help eliminate 18m tonnes of CO2 from European skies every year

Not only would these gains help us dramatically reduce our fuel consumption and therefore CO2 emissions, they would help us cut flight times thereby providing our customers with quicker journeys as well as reducing noise pollution for local communities.

The good news is that this issue is firmly on the radar of the new UK Government, with Aviation Minister Mike Kane confirming it is a key priority following its inclusion in Labour’s election manifesto. We now need to take their ambition to drive change and complete the airspace modernisation programme in the UK with a focus on the south east, and ensuring that there is a single entity responsible for the timely delivery of the programme.

But first we need to deliver the quick wins. For example, the completion of the implementation of Free Route Airspace in the UK which would drive immediate efficiency improvements.

We’re targeting a 1% improvement every year from 2025 to 2035 as part of our Net Zero Roadmap. It should be entirely achievable and we’re committed to work closely with key stakeholders, including Government, to deliver this change. Collaboration and drive are going to be essential to deliver this, but we cannot continue to miss this opportunity. The stakes are simply too high.