Efficiency Trends for New Commercial Jet Aircraft 1960\u20132008

Climate Change Clearinghouse2009PDFResearch PaperRutherford, DanielZeinali, MazyarInternational Council on Clean TransportationInternational Council on Clean TransportationUnited StatesClimate changeCivil aircraftFuel compositionAircraft exhaust gasesCostsCarbon dioxideFuel consumptionStandardsTrend (Statistics)Concerns about aviation's growing climate impact have revived interest in CO2 emission standards for new aircraft. To date, commercial aviation has been perceived to produce continuous improvements in efficiency by quickly adopting fuel-efficient technologies and designs as a natural response to fuel prices. This paper describes an historical analysis of sales- and activity-weighted fuel efficiency for new jet aircraft from 1960 to 2008 that suggests that fuel costs alone have not produced consistent improvements in aircraft efficiency.109