Uncomfortable day for aviation as Farnborough runway hits 50C

The temperature on the runway at the airshow was 50 degrees. There were flights by passenger jets, military aircraft, and flypasts by the Red Arrows during the show.

The heat on Monday reminded us of the importance of decarbonising aviation, which contributes 3% of global emissions. Zero-emissions flight presents a technical challenge far greater than decarbonising most other parts of the economy and the threat of climate crisis has taken the shine off an industry that was once the height of glamour.

Air passenger numbers are roaring back, even on slower-recovering long-haul routes, despite the fact that governments are turning their attention to aviation emissions.

The UK government used the show to promise that the peak year for aviation emissions will be in 2019.

10% of all jet fuel used in the UK must be sustainable by the year 2030. The UK has an ambition to have at least five commercial-scale SAF plants under construction in the next decade.

Environmental groups said the strategy lacked a focus on reducing air traffic, a dirty word at an industry event known for its barrage of orders of new jets that produce more than one million tons of carbon dioxide equivalent over their lifetimes.

The strategy fails by leaving out a policy to fairly reduce the demand for flights such as a frequent flyer levy, according to a campaigner at the Climate charity Possible.

The chief executive of Rolls-Royce said he hoped the UK government remained committed to reducing aviation emissions.

He said that the need for zero-carbon power is more important than any change in government.

Some suppliers face less risk than others. Collins is working on high-power wiring that could be used in hybrid engines. A prototype electric motor has been produced at the US company's facility in the West Mids.

Up to 30% of a passenger jet's emissions could be saved by hybrid propulsion, according to the president of power and controls. He said that the hybrid electric part is very realistic.

The message from Farnborough was that the industry is pinning its hopes on SAF and hydrogen technology.

Plants can be used to make SAF. Many analysts don't think it will be able to live up to its name without using a lot of land or energy.

After a first net zero flight in 2023, East thinks there will be many decades of demand for the product.

H2O is the second biggest hope of the industry. Water is the only source of hydrogen when it oxidizes.

At the show, EasyJet and Rolls-Royce said they would invest in hydrogen gas turbine engines, while Toulouse said it would study the effects of steam on the atmosphere. Boeing's hydrogen efforts have been limited to testing a storage tank, but that hasn't stopped the company from announcing work on hydrogen propulsion with CFM, an engine joint venture.

He thinks it will take between 15 and 25 years for a jet to run on gas.

Even then, it could still be relying on burning calories rather than generating electricity. Engine manufacturers might be able to keep making profitable gas turbines if they were able to burn either hydrogen or Kerosene.

Val Miftakhov, chief executive of hydrogen fuel cell plane startup ZeroAvia, said his aim is "true zero" flight using hydrogen produced from renewable power.

The company wants to certify a 19-seater and a 90-seater by the end of the 20th century. He is optimistic that 20 to 30 years from now, we will have technology that covers all aircraft, but he can't say how exactly.

The passenger jets are able to carry well over 100 people. It will probably be in my lifetime in a small plane, but I will be very old. He said that a battery-powered flight is more likely to be seen by his children.

The industry is trying to figure out how to fly with no emissions. The order bonanza for fossil fuel jets shows that the aviation industry is counting on the jet fuel age to continue for a long time.