PARIS: Airbus unveiled Friday the carbon footprint of its aircraft, a move that will help measure progress made by the aviation industry towards its goal of reducing emissions.

It is the first time an aircraft manufacturer has released lifetime carbon emissions of its aircraft, and Airbus Executive VP Corporate Affairs Julie Kitcher said it was an opportunity to increase transparency in the sector.

“We really want to demonstrate our commitment to driving decarbonisation of the sector,” she said.

Airbus calculated that the 863 planes that it delivered in 2019 will emit 740 million tonnes of CO2 during an estimated 22 years in service. As a point of comparison, France is estimated to have emitted 441 million tonnes of CO2 in 2019. Airbus used the accounting measure for emissions used by most leading firms, the Greenhouse Gas Protocol, including measuring the use of its products by consumers.

Airbus pointed out, however, that the efficiency of its planes is improving.

It calculated that the planes delivered in 2019 will produce on average 66.6 grams of CO2 per passenger per kilometre. In 2020, that figure dropped to 63.5 grams per passenger kilometre.

The current commercial aircraft fleet, including older aircraft, is estimated to emit on average 90 grams per passenger kilometre, according to the NGO International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT).