29/03/2022 (Agence Europe) – On Monday 28 March, the airline industry organisations ACI Europe, Civil Air Navigation Services Organisation (CANSO) and European Regions Airline Association (ERA) published a study commissioned by themselves, which aims to put into perspective the level of CO2 emissions savings due to the transfer of short-haul flights to rail. For all three organisations, the construction of new railway lines has a high environmental cost due to the emissions associated with the production of cement and steel, and all of this should be taken into account in the overall calculation. Furthermore, a total shift of flights under 500 km to rail “would jeopardise the ability of short-haul aviation to serve as a test bed for the decarbonisation of aviation”, according to ACI Europe, CANSO and ERA. Finally, the three organisations argue that the decarbonisation of aviation will be “well advanced by the time comparable rail infrastructure is deployed”. (TM)