Can air travel be environmentally friendly? Airlines want you to think so

Europe’s biggest carriers say they’re offsetting emissions, but new analysis suggests their efforts are failing

Airlines are misleading flyers with carbon-neutral claims, study says.

Europe’s leading airlines are misleading consumers with claims that they can fly guilt-free by using carbon offsets to neutralize the environmental impact of air travel, according to a new report by the nonprofit Carbon Market Watch.

A temporary dip during the Covid-19 pandemic aside, airline emissions have been steadily rising for the past two decades and, left unchecked, could potentially triple by 2050. Globally, the industry generates roughly one billion tons of CO2 per year — comparable to the emissions of Japan, the world’s third-largest economy.