IATA EU concern

THE International Air Transport Association (IATA) has expressed “surprise and concern” at a decision by the European Parliament to adopt changes to the EU Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) which would expand its scope to include all flight departures from Europe.

The proposed measure would become effective in 2024, with IATA saying it would lead to “serious distortion of competition and weaken the global competitive position of EU airlines and hubs”.

IATA said the CO2 emissions of international flights departing EU airspace is already covered under the Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation (CORSIA), while the current EU scheme covers flights within Europe.

“A unilateral decision by the EU to expand the scope of ETS extra-territorially to non-EU destinations will threaten the prospects for major global decarbonisation efforts,” fulminated IATA CEO Willie Walsh.

He harked back to a similar “misguided” proposal in 2012 which was unanimously rejected, urging EU officials to support CORSIA instead.