For centuries, humans have strived to be like the birds. However, as we came to realize, birds had a gift of something: efficiency.
Now what is efficiency? Why does it matter? How does it link to aviation?
Efficiency in aviation
Efficiency, in simpler terms, is a measure of how much work you put into something versus how much output you receive in proportion to that. For example, a bird is a very good example.
Look up at a bird, sometimes you’ll notice that they only have to push their wings down once or twice, yet that small push allows them to go so much further, or even the fact that birds can just glide in the wind.
So why does efficiency matter in aviation?
Lets go back to that same example of the bird that can just glide. Why is it considered as being efficient? Well, we would say that its efficient because the bird uses less energy, per distance that it travels. So we can use this same example to say that efficiency with aircraft just means the distance the plane travels, and the amount of fuel (same as the energy with the bird) it uses to travel that same distance.
If the plane uses less fuel to cover that same distance, it uses less energy, so it’s more efficient.
But why does a plane need to be more efficient and what’s the benefits?
Being more efficient has many advantages not only for the aircraft itself, but also for the airline.
When the plane is more efficient, we say that it uses less fuel per mile, meaning that there is lowered operating cost for the airline.
Over a year, and across many many aircraft and many flights, this can help save airlines millions of pounds.
Sustainability in aviation
We all hear the activists saying that we need to cut down emissions, and it definitely is true. For this reason, a lot of action has been taken to ensure lower carbon emission from aircraft and the industry itself. Lets see how and why.
Why it’s more profitable to be sustainable
Aviation, and the entire industry accounts for about 2-3% of global Carbon Dioxide output, and due to this, growing pressure is mounting on airlines to reduce their carbon emissions. Companies that fail to meet certain standards can be hit with fines.
Rather, its cheaper for airlines to use Sustainable Aviation Fuels (SAPs) and other innovations that help keep costs low. Efficient and sustainable flight also secures public trust and increases investor confidence to show them that, “yup, we know what we’re doing”
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