Cleaner and Responsible Consumption 7 (2022) 100082

Contents lists available at ScienceDirect

Cleaner and Responsible Consumption

journal homepage: www.journals.elsevier.com/cleaner-and-responsible-consumption

Green aviation in India: Airline’s implementation for

achieving sustainability
Vasavi Thummala *, Rahul B. Hiremath
Symbiosis Centre for Management and Human Resources Development (SCMHRD), Symbiosis International (Deemed University) (SIU), Hinjewadi, Pune, Maharashtra,
India

A R T I C L E I N F O A B S T R A C T

Keywords: India emerged as the ninth –largest aviation market globally, with more than 120 operational airports, notably
Climate change 34 internationally operating, complemented by increasing arguments and counterarguments regarding the avi­
Aviation emissions ation’s contribution to the climate change. There is an urgent need to assess, investigate and evaluate different
Sustainability
airlines operating in India, incorporate various mitigation methods into their business models. This paper
NVivo
Frame analysis
classifies and scrutinizes the actions that airlines are implementing and communicating through their websites
with respect to their responsibility and their views regarding the environmental implications arising due to the
air travels. This paper uses the data available on the internet like the airline’s websites, their annual reports and
the media through which the airlines communicate. The data is analyszed using frame analysis and by employing
the NVivo software, which does a qualitative analysis of various sustainable initiatives adopted by major airlines
and characterizes them into several themes. It helps us to identify the areas of aviation where sustainable efforts
are being made, as well as how to expand the themes in the coming years to make aviation greener and much
more sustainable.

1. Introduction The portion attributed to the sector is set to rise as it is one of the
problematic sectors to attain greenhouse gas emission reductions.
Every year, greenhouse gas emissions increase at a higher rate, Aviation, a rapidly growing industry, releases more carbon dioxide per
making the climate mitigation and adaptation challenges grow. Without passenger-kilometer than any other transport mode. The climate change
a collective effort across all the sectors, there will be little chance of researchers argue that work-related travel trips and conferences, and
preventing the ‘dangerous climate change,’ and the aviation sector has a fieldwork are the main carbon-emitting activities (Whitmarsh et al.,
significant role. Present and future technologies, operational processes, 2020). There are many environmental concerns associated with aircraft
and behavioral changes contribute to a widespread opportunity for like stratospheric ozone reduction, regional and local pollution, which
other sectors to alleviate their CO2 emissions in vague terms. Still, as are caused due to the release of several gases that impact the chemical
they do so, the aviation sector will become an increasingly significant composition of the atmosphere both directly and indirectly. The prac­
player. As per the estimated growth projections of the aviation sector, it tices aligning in reduction of these may have a reduction in the emis­
contributes to about 15–25 percent of the global CO2 emissions by 2050, sions from the sector.
and the scenarios will be exceeding the carbon budget completely. So, Aviation is one of the rapidly growing industries worldwide, and it
only by acknowledging that the present aviation’s projected emissions has also been the accelerated growing transportation mode in India.
are inharmonious with avoiding ‘dangerous climate change, the industry Airlines are a critical part of our national economy, providing for people
has to fully grab the demand of accelerating innovation and direct it to and goods worldwide, enabling our economic growth. It is the 7th
deliver in a more sustainable way to 2050 and farther on (Bows, A. largest civil aviation market globally, the 3rd largest domestic aviation
2010). market worldwide. It is estimated to overhaul UK to become the 3rd
The development of air travel has been escorted by the escalating largest air passenger (both Domestic and International) market as esti­
concerns encompassing the corresponding environmental implications. mated by IATA (International Air Transport Association) forecasts by
As such, the aviation industry is a prime contributor to climate change. 2024. The passenger (both domestic and International) traffic was

* Corresponding author.
E-mail addresses: vasavireddy.thummala@gmail.com (V. Thummala), rahulhiremath@gmail.com (R.B. Hiremath).

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.clrc.2022.100082
Received 12 November 2021; Received in revised form 15 September 2022; Accepted 26 September 2022
Available online 19 October 2022
2666-7843/© 2022 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-
nc-nd/4.0/).
V. Thummala and R.B. Hiremath Cleaner and Responsible Consumption 7 (2022) 100082

115.37 million in FY21, and the growth rate declined due to the Covid- In the period of deregulation, a steady stream of new aircraft and
19 restrictions compared to the previous years. To serve the needs of the modifications to the existing fleet has appeared that, amongst other
rising air traffic, the Government of India has been working towards the things, have been built on previous experiences to enhance fuel con­
increment in the number of airports. The upsurge in demand also led to sumption (Brugnoli et al., 2015). The propelling force to the new aircraft
the escalation of the number of airplanes operating in the sector. But models comes from the internal technical innovation within the aviation
still, India’s aviation sector is substantially not utilized to its full po­ sector and the developments in the fuel-efficient aircraft manufacturing
tential. However, it had great growth opportunities as it is considered industry. A vital part of the momentum for the fuel efficiency of the
that air transport is still expensive for the majority of the country’s aircraft has come from technological innovations rather than environ­
population. In 2019/2020, India’s carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions mental policy initiatives.
decreased by an estimated 30 million tons of CO2 (MtCO2). It was the Global aviation has an annual growth rate of about 5% and plays a
first-time emissions had fallen in the country in four decades, with a prime role in economic activities and climate change emissions. The
drop of three MtCO2 last occurring in 1982. Although factors such as CO2 emissions from the aviation industry can be reduced, and the effi­
renewable energy growth and economic slowdown affected these fig­ ciency of the emissions can be escalated by adopting better aircraft and
ures, measures, such as lockdowns, implemented to slow the spread of network management. The decrease in the size of the aircraft can reduce
the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) had a significant impact in early CO2 emissions (Loetal., 2020). Thus, there shall be incentives provided
2020. According to the source, March 2020 experienced an estimated 15 in the environmental policy for reducing the size of the aircraft on
percent drop in emissions compared to the previous year. various routes by considering the demand variations. Also, it is neces­
In the last two years, the Indian aviation industry has grown by more sary to provide an incentive to renovate the aircraft fleets since general
than 20% annually. In the future decades, it is estimated to escalate to a technical progress is a determinant of aviation emission efficiency.
double-digit rate. Concerns regarding its environmental impact has Tourism has emerged as a growth system as it has provided new
arisen as a result of its meteoric surge in economic activity. In 2016, economic opportunities and has become a challenge to reduce emis­
India agreed to participate in the Carbon Offset and Reduction Scheme sions. The tourism sub-sectors like aviation and accommodation shall be
for International Aviation (CORSIA), which will be mandatory starting paid much attention to mitigate the emissions using the technology.
in 2026. There is a considerable need for the Government, the airlines’ Also, the Paris agreement insists upon the significant yearly improve­
operators, and all the stakeholders involved in the aviation sector to take ment towards a zero-carbon path. So, the focus shall be on building
all the possible preventive measures to cut off the future emissions to prosperous and resilient low-carbon tourism destination systems. Des­
avoid the ‘dangerous climate change’ by implementing various miti­ tinations consequently have a vital role in reducing emissions (Gössling
gating measures in different segments of the industry potential (Terre­ and Higham, 2021), as they comprise clusters of tourism stakeholders
noire et al., 2019). who can work toward de-carbonization while meeting secondary goals
This paper tries to acknowledge various parts of the aviation industry of increasing profitability and resilience. Given the observed instability
where there is a huge potential to decrease carbon emissions and explore in the global tourism system and its tendency to become more vulner­
the different segments or themes where the mitigation measures can be able, there is a need for destinations to understand interdependent risks
adapted and which will have a more outstanding contribution in alle­ of low profitability, carbon intensity, and climate change, all of which
viating the emissions. demand fundamental changes in volume-growth destination manage­
ment approaches that seek to increase tourist arrivals constantly. The
2. Literature review challenge for destinations is to support processes that will help tourism
develop along a net-zero emission trajectory to 2050. Destinations can
Before sixty years, the aviation industry was responsible for a tiny support these processes directly, through the market mix they seek to
proportion of the transport task at a minor stage. Currently, the sector attract, with closer markets being favorable to distant ones while
has become an integral part of the world’s economic activity, resulting fostering discrete markets that use more rather than less sustainable
in about 9 percent of the world’s GDP. The triumph of the aviation in­ transport modes to both travels to and from the destination and in
dustry is to be continued over the following decades also. Continuous transport preferences and decision making at the destination. Destina­
expeditious development in the sector would provide economic benefits tion managers must focus on the mechanisms available through the
and increase mobility among the world’s population. But these advan­ involvement of a range of tourism system players to increase tourist
tages are accompanied by a cost, most remarkably a notable increase in length of stay. Length of stay is implicated in annual leave provisions,
greenhouse gas emissions. Though currently, it is not a prime diver for transport capacities, services and costs, tour packages, accommodation
global warming, the sector’s estimated growth potential makes it a vital pricing mechanisms, and destination services and activities, among
factor contributing to the emissions. According to the IPCC report, the other things.
emissions are anticipated to increase at a three-fold to seven-fold rate The civil aviation market contributes to about 4–5% of the global
between 2000 and 2050 (Macintosh and Wallace, 2009). International emissions, which implies that the emissions per passenger are very high
aviation is the vital point for the emissions contributions, and as the participating passengers are minimal in the air travels. The
much-needed concern is needed to mitigate the impacts. The United increased consciousness of the environmental emissions shall be shared
Nations Framework Convention for Climate change (UNFCCC) shall by the airlines, policymakers, and air travelers. The inclination of the air
include that the domestic aviation emissions in the national level travelers to pay for the reduction of the offset of the carbon emissions is
emissions and the international civil aviation emissions are not included dependent on the quantity of CO2 reduced, the type of the project
in the national level emissions and submitted as a memo item in the financed by the donation and also the distance that is being travelled,
UNFCCC national inventory reports. and the socio-demographic characteristics of the passengers and mainly
It is estimated that the aviation sector shall be contributing about 2–3 the aim of the project shall be mentioned to the passengers or else the
percent of the global climate change emissions; there has to be a inclination shall be reduced (Rice et al., 2020). The enthusiasm for
noticeable change in the environmental policy to detach the fuel con­ paying for the offset of the carbon emissions shall be low for the frequent
sumption per passenger and the demand for air travel at a time when flyers (Rotaris et al., 2020), people traveling for business, men, unem­
increasingly liberalized markets are pushing up the demands for airline ployed, and people having a lower education degree. Also, another
services. The airline industry has been claiming that this detaching critical factor affecting the inclination of the passengers is the design of
process is already taking place as airline seats are being flown with more the donation proposals. The last factor is that air travelers should be
fuel efficiently because of the deregulation of air transportation markets. advised while—or preferably before—booking their flight about the
In effect, there is a commercial incentive for airlines to be fuel-efficient. quantity of CO2 they will contribute to producing and the social cost of

2
V. Thummala and R.B. Hiremath Cleaner and Responsible Consumption 7 (2022) 100082

divided into four major sectors:

Technological innovation - The improvement in engine, aero­
dynamics design, and the usage of lightweight material to reduce
aircraft weight is found beneficial to the environment.
Operational efficiency – Can be improved through flight paths and
ground operations optimization.
Fleet Planning – The greener performance of an aircraft can be
improved concerning aircraft noise and fuel efficiency.
Policies, Rules & Regulations – Policies focus on the carbon pricing
scheme and CO2-based cost for the route configurations and charges for
noise pollution.
Air travel has become a fast-developing business sector in this
contemporary world with expeditiously increasing transport load and
fuel requirement estimations (Fig. 2). As the emissions from this sector
contribute to climate change (Ryley et al., 2020), reducing these emis­
sions is a vital task, and the use of bio-jet fuels in the short and long
terms helps achieve sustainability. These sustainable fuels shall be
compatible with the existing jet fuels, storage, and transfer (Chakraborty
Fig. 1. Green airport model composition. and Samanta, 2020). There is a wide range of availability of these fuel
sources, and they can be consumed in all three forms: solid, liquid, and
gas. Mainly, there are two types of biofuels; Primary biofuels are natural
and directly used for heating, cooking, and electric production without
any chemical process. Examples are waste oils, animal fats, and wood.
Secondary types of biofuels are used to improve the properties of pri­
mary biofuels. Vegetable oils, biodiesel, ethanol, methanol, and biogas
are some examples of secondary biofuels. Production of secondary bio­
fuels from renewable sources with chemical processes (Yilmaz and
Atmanli, 2017) is divided into three areas: first, second, and third gen­
eration. Secondary bio-fuels are easily blended with fossil jet fuels or can
be directly used in aircraft engines. There are specific properties that
every bio-fuel shall have, such as inedibility, formed from renewable
sources, because a reduction in the emissions, shall be sustainable and
clean, and have a remarkable agreement with the conventional fuels.
Besides these advantages, there are certain drawbacks of these fuels, like
they are having poor fuel properties and are very costly, which are
hindering their progress (Hari et al., 2015). The increasing demand for
these fuels in the long term may cause food scarcity, harm to soil fertility
Fig. 2. Worldwide commercial jet fuel prize and usage, world mar­ and water availability (Neuling and Kaltschmitt, 2018). The supply and
ket: 2011–2021. demand of the resources for biofuels production shall be monitored and
taken care of so that it shall not impact the agricultural processes and
their choice such that the willingness shall increase. bio-diversity.
The airport infrastructure (Ferrulli, 2016) shall play a significant role In the present scenario, remarkable progress is made towards the
in mitigating the carbon emissions from the aviation sector by adopting commercialization of sustainable alternatives to fossil fuels. There is an
a sustainable building model (shown in Fig. 1). There are several in­ increasing need for drop-in fuels which would match the characteristics
dicators in the sustainable airport model like: of fossil fuels. There are specific standards prescribed for sustainable
fuels both at national and regional levels such that the supply chains are
• Noise reduction, strong and genuinely provide the climate and environmental benefits.
• Emission reduction, Generally, aviation fuels are produced by converting feedstock
• air quality, through industrial processes into a fuel. For this to be continued without
• Energy Management, interruption and no compromise in the quality, the need to identify a
• Water and waste management, capable and reliable range of feedstock and the development in the
• Land use, technological processes. But there are specific barriers like economic
• Biodiversity Conservation, barriers, policy, finance, and technical barriers which have to be over­
• Quality of internal environment, come to continue the progress towards sustainable development. Also,
• transport control, and the Government shall take the initiative to provide specific incentives
• Social, cultural indicators. and make policy changes to encourage the airlines towards using sus­
tainable fuels. Greenhouse gas emissions are a burning concern world­
There is massive scope for the existing airports to adapt to the green wide. All the countries are trying to invent different mitigation strategies
buildings’ standards such as LEED, BREEAM, and clean energy (Boca to lessen the impacts of the emissions in the coming future. Since its
Santa et al., 2020). The lack of the sustainable guidelines or inception, the aviation sector has also been contributing to the emis­
pre-requisites required for the planning and certification of a sustainable sions, which account for almost 3% percent of the world’s emissions. Its
airport requires immediate focus. These guidelines help in the rede­ percentage share is estimated to double in the coming years. Generally,
signing of the present airports towards the achievement of sustainable the aviation industry comprises airports, aircraft, and related utilities.
goals. Airports act as an interface between landside accesses to airspace and
The efficiency of the mitigation strategies adopted for the reduction airside access to the ground. Recently, it can be seen that airports are
of the emissions (Teoh and Khoo, 2016) from the sector can mainly be evolving into a transport cum infrastructure hub that caters to the

3
V. Thummala and R.B. Hiremath Cleaner and Responsible Consumption 7 (2022) 100082

Fig. 3. a & 3b: Passenger Traffic Growth in a million from FY18 to FY21.

commercial, industrial, business of the aviation industry. As a result, the

Fig. 4. Market Share of domestic airlines in India (FY2020).
area around many international airports is developing into a city and is
better described as Airport Metropolis (Sukumaran and Sudhakar,
2017). So, the ecological impact during the construction and operation
of the airport will increase in the future. As they are made up of larger
areas, they can be potential sources of energy consumption, and the bills
paid are also very huge. As the airports depend on conventional energy
sources, they are causing pollution since the initial stages of construc­
tion. Air travel is less time-consuming, more comfortable, and reduced
the price of airfare charges, and this requires a more excellent infra­
structure to accommodate the increased number of passengers.
So, the airport infrastructure plays a crucial role, and there is a need
of the hour to transforming them into sustainable and environmentally
friendly. Using renewable sources, a practical methodology shall be
developed to convert the airports dependent on conventional energy
sources to more environmentally friendly structures.

2.1. Overview of the Indian Aviation Industry

The Indian Civil Aviation Industry is the third largest civil aviation
market, and it is estimated to become the third-largest air passenger
market by 2024. As per the IATA estimates, the Indian passenger traffic
was 115.37 million in FY21. Domestic and international passenger
traffic declined at a rate of − 9.02% and − 28.64%, respectively, from
2016 to 2020, due to Covid- 19 restrictions and lockdowns (Fig. 3a & b).
Currently, the Indian aviation sector has inadequate infrastructure,
such as the airports’ availability and potential and fleet size (Rathore
et al., 2020). To reduce this gap, both the government and the airlines
are focusing on building the regional airports in the north-eastern part of
the country and increasing the number of operational airports to
Fig. 5. Market Share of International airlines in India (FY2020).
190–200 by FY 2040 to meet the requisites. Due to the increasing pas­
senger traffic, there needs to be high operating efficiency. India has one
international operations is the 7th highest in the world, with an
of the highest aviation fuel prices globally, and the rising prices have
approximate value of 127 lakh tons. As the growth rate of the Indian
become a significant concern for policymakers. So, the need for the
aviation sector is no less than 10%, so the corresponding carbon foot­
usage of cleaner sources like bio-jet fuels has increased. But in the pre­
print can notably escalate if proper mitigation measures are not taken.
sent context in India, these bio-fuels are financially inviable as these
And also, as per the DGCA report, 95% of the emissions arise from
fuels cost 60–70% more than conventional fuels. Already the conven­
aircraft, and the remaining 5% is from airport-related operations
tional fuels cost 30–40% of the operational costs, and further shifting to
(Rathore et al., 2020). So, the strategies to be implemented and focused
the bio-fuels would further escalate the sector’s operational efficiency
on shall be related to reducing aircraft emissions. The following bar
significantly (Staples et al., 2018).
chart depicts the market share of the scheduled domestic and interna­
According to the Director-General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) report,
tionally operated airlines operating in India (Fig. 4 & Fig. 5).
the carbon footprint of Indian Airlines on both domestic and

4
V. Thummala and R.B. Hiremath Cleaner and Responsible Consumption 7 (2022) 100082

Table 1 Table 1 (continued )

Initial framing. FRAME SUMMARY OF THE DATA DETAIL
FRAME SUMMARY OF THE DATA DETAIL
Hitachi recommended
CONSISTENT The fuel cost is the main Indigo has launched an Vistara to adapt to
SUSTAINABLE cost* for any airlines. So, aircraft that completely Electronic Flight Bag (EFB)
BENCHMARKERS many airlines are runs on the sustainable Technology in a secured and
continuously focusing-on aviation fuel (SAF). “We efficient way. By
inventing ways that have partnered with CSIR- collaborating with
reduce the fuel IIP to ensure that we are technology partners, the
consumption like change working towards digital transition was aimed
(* - Operating cost) in controlling emissions, and to help the crew perform
design of aircraft, in the process, building flight management tasks
introducing electronic supply chains for with more accuracy and
flight bags, usage of manufacturing and speed.
sustainable fuels etc. deploying sustainable Now, by engaging EFB, the
aviation fuel in India and pilots can quickly access
globally in the foreseeable vital operational data in
future.” Clean Skies for cockpit that is helping
tomorrow by Spice jet aims improve on- board safety
at flying 100 billion and flying efficiency besides
passengers on SAF by 2030. reduction in CO2 emission
“Aviation is a key economic due to reduction in
enabler; yet increasing document weight.”
access to air travel and its RECYCLING Introducing the recycling The airlines have adopted
benefits must not come at REFORMERS measures both on-board the Reduce, Reuse, and
the cost of the environment. and inflight will reduce Recycle strategy.
To ensure we collectively cost and prevent cross- “We are aware of the impact
rise to the challenge, I contamination of the that all airline activity has
proudly serve on the wastes. on the environment
Steering Committee of the globally. Hence, we are
World Economic Forum’s taking our commitment to
Clean Skies for Tomorrow reducing our own footprint
Coalition, working to seriously. The cabin waste
advance the use of collection program is just
sustainable aviation fuels. one initiative in AirAsia’s
The project and this new, extensive sustainability
seminal report are exactly program and is how we
what we need to speed practice Sustainability
aviation’s Spirit, our 7th All-star core
decarbonization.” value. Simple practices like
TECHNOLOGICAL Airlines are opting digital GoAir integrated with the collecting and managing on-
TRAILBLAZERS solutions and using OpenAirlines’ SkyBreathe, board waste including
artificial intelligence for by using the artificial newspapers, paper towels
enhancing the intelligence it improves the and plastic bottles really can
productivity and operational efficiencies in have an extremely positive
sustainability and in turn fleet, route and load outcome. We’re very
reducing the fuel costs optimization. pleased with the result of
and making the air travel “Green aviation represents our cabin waste reduction
economical and user - the future in the program in 2019 and would
friendly in all possible development of the aviation like to thank our airport
ways for the passengers. industry. Despite this partners and guests for their
pandemic situation, support and participation.”
forward-looking airlines
like Go Air have chosen this
moment to embrace new
digital technologies that
will make them more 3. Methodology
competitive while reducing
their CO2 emissions. With
The present research scrutinizes how the prominent airlines in India
SkyBreathe®, GoAir is now
up and prepared for a bright have chosen eco-friendly efforts to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions
future and we are proud to and executing their responsibility towards the environment. The
help them accelerate them research explores how the seven airlines being operated in India
transition to sustainable executed several climate change actions. The primary research method
aviation”
OPERATIONAL Different airlines have One of the complex
adopted was Netnography (Burns and Cowlishaw, 2014) associated with
INNOVATORS incorporated several challenges put forward to Frame analysis (Burns and Cowlishaw, 2014), which consists of Internet
automated systems into any air carrier is the high ethnography “fieldwork,” i.e., the online surveying of the sustainable
the aviation supply chain operational costs. Finding measures adopted by various airlines in India. It gathers a lot of data
to improve the efficiency innovative ways to reduce
used to analyse and examine the mitigating measures in different sectors
of the systems and the these costs has become an
save the time of all the arduous task for the airlines. or segments of the aviation industry and what new procedures are being
stakeholders involved. “Aiming to contribute discovered and adopted in other parts of air travel. Seven airlines, in
towards providing solutions which, five are domestically operated and remaining two are interna­
to bring higher efficiency in tionally operating, are chosen to give deep and detailed insights about
operations and help make
the customer future ready,
the information. All sectors of the seven airlines like the corporate
environmental actions, annual reports and press statements to make
certain full range investigation and obtain complete quantity of

5
V. Thummala and R.B. Hiremath Cleaner and Responsible Consumption 7 (2022) 100082

Table 2 ➢ Go Air
Outcome framing.
FRAMES PROOF FROM THE AIRLINES WEBSITES 3.2. International
Positives • “IndiGo has registered a reduction of 1,478,359 tons of carbon
emissions from FY ’15 to FY ’21. In FY ‘23, the airline aims to ➢ Vistara
reduce CO2 emission by 18 per cent per available seat kilometer ➢ Qatar
(ASK) when compared to FY’16,”
• "as a socially responsible airline, it is deeply concerned about the 3.3. Frame analysis
scarcity of natural resources and the increasing impact of climate
change on the planet; we understand the importance of
sustainability for future generations.” (Indigo, 2021) In this analysis, the collected data is analysed in two rounds of frames
• “Air India has adopted an integrated approach to carbon which were developed in classifying the airlines’ sustainable and climate
emissions reduction, which covers every aspect from ground to mitigation actions. The frames are initial and outcome (Cowlishaw,
the air. New procedures have been established which take into
2014). The initial frame analysis (Table 1) includes how the airlines are
consideration current aircraft performance, uneconomical use of
aircraft systems and unnecessary carrying of weight.” (Air India, typically enacting the actions with respect to sustainability and climate
2015) change problems. The outcome framing (Table 2) identifies what are
• “It has the potential to reduce our dependence on traditional positive and negative impacts associated with the ongoing action plans
Aviation Fuel by up to 50 percent on every flight and bring down on sustainability by different airlines.
fares. India is the fastest growing aviation market in the world
today and it is our responsibility to grow using clean and
sustainable technologies.” (Spice Jet, 2018) 4. Analysis & findings
F0B7 “We are pleased to be able to offer our customers the opportunity
to offset the carbon emissions associated with their journeys with The data collected and gathered is made available for conducting the
us. As an environmentally responsible airline, our modern fleet
qualitative analysis using the NVivo software. This thematic analysis
of technologically advanced aircraft, together with our fuel
–efficiency program.” (Qatar, 2020) aims to segregate the various mitigation strategies into relevant themes
F0B7 “It is our ambition as an airline to minimize our impact on the to get a fair idea of the sustainable operations and streamline them. This
environment, and facilitate continued global travel and exercise gives us a clear perspective on which areas are the measures
commerce while limiting carbon emissions.” (Qatar, 2022) taking place, how they can be improvised further to align with the
F0B7 “We have also deepened our commitment to sustainable aviation
by pledging to reduce consumption of plastic by over 50 per cent
carbon emissions targets of 2050, the areas to be concentrated, and the
and shifting to eco-friendly utensils and stainless-steel cutlery for new areas to be explored. So, for designing the mitigation strategies in
our inflight catering. Our employees, across the network in various areas, firstly, we need to know in which sectors the initiatives
which we operate, reaffirm their commitment to a cleaner and are being implemented. Thus, this exercise gives the thematic view of all
greener planet by planting trees on World Environment Day.”
the unstructured data available. The corresponding section demon­
(Vistara, 2019)
Negatives F0B7 "At IndiGo, we also believe that the use of all the sustainable strates the content themes identified from the analysed data by per­
practices combined together cannot match the impact which can forming the qualitative analysis.
be created by sustainable aviation fuels (SAF). However, we also
understand that SAF is not in mass production," (Indigo, 2021) 5. Themes identified
F0B7 “The ATF (air turbine fuel) tax charged by states for domestic
travel is a particular issue. While Indigo feels that some Indian
states are quite reasonable, the bigger, more important states 5.1. Technological
charge higher ATF taxes, which forces up the average.” (Indigo,
2021) In the contemporary world, with constant changes in the technology,
F0B7 “The infrastructure required for biofuel is also a major
airlines are adopting innovative solution which incorporates Artificial
challenge.” (IIHS, 2019)
F0B7 “Perhaps it is surprising there hasn’t been more collaboration Intelligence, digital solutions for the safety of passengers, security of
around dealing with the fall-out to airlines as for many govern­ aircraft information, quicker and user-friendly accessibility of data,
ments aviation is a strategic industry.” (Qatar, 2021) historical data analysis, weather forecasting, route optimization, weight
F0B7 “SAF is for now two to five times more expensive than fossil fuel, management systems for the aircraft, etc., to decrease their operational
but costs will come down with volume, and the transition to
cleaner fuels would contribute substantially to solving climate
costs. All these solutions mainly concentrated towards the decremental
change. SAF can be 100% less carbon-intensive over its life cycle of aircraft weight which reduces the fuel consumption and results in the
compared to conventional fuels. The Deploying Sustainable decline of the expenses for both airlines and passengers. Also, in-flight
Aviation Fuels at Scale in India" (WEF, 2021) digitalized operations would save fuel and costs. Airlines are partner­
ing with efficient IT solutions providers are discovering innovative so­
lutions for the airport infrastructure. Thus, technology plays a crucial
information regarding the environmental and climate change subject.
role in eliminating human errors by automation and increases time
The secondary research method adopted is NVivo software and is
savings.
used to study the collected data. This software is a qualitative data
analysis tool that helps analyse unorganized data of any size and find
5.2. Technical
valuable inputs from the data. It recognizes various trends and scruti­
nizes the information in multiple ways possible. It also gives the coding
Both airlines and aircraft manufacturers have been focusing on new
for the data surveyed. Also, make certain that there is a correlation
ways to reduce the aircraft’s weight they operate. Small changes in the
between the measures taken and the outcomes obtained by the airlines
design of the aircraft components can result in a substantial difference in
in various possible themes. The selected airlines are:
the operational costs. For instance, altercations in the aircraft’s wings
can reduce wind drag or decrease wind resistance, resulting in a sig­
3.1. Domestic nificant decline in fuel consumption. Also, the materials used in making
in-flight components like seats and footrest with the lighter materials
➢ Indigo can further save fuel. Many airlines are now focusing on the design of
➢ Air India fuel-efficient aircraft, which can reduce noise pollution also. Many
➢ Air Asia efficient airlines are being used in today’s travel. Still, more research is
➢ Spice Jet to be done to design the engines suitable for biofuel, and traditional fuel

6
V. Thummala and R.B. Hiremath Cleaner and Responsible Consumption 7 (2022) 100082

Fig. 6. Coding of Air Asia airline data.

blends will further decrease the emissions and noise footprint. automatic route selection based on performance-based navigation. Most
wastage comes from the cabin operations like garbage from the pas­
senger leftovers, cutlery, etc. So, providing the flyers with biodegradable
5.3. Sustainable practices on ground
items, segregation, and recycling of the cabin wastage are prevalent
measures most airlines take to reduce the usage of plastics. Airlines also
The mitigation strategies adopted in in-flight operations reduce
came up with the innovative digital solution of making the magazines
carbon emissions to a great extent. But the on-ground practices also
and food menus in the digital format so that their extra weight is elim­
contribute to the emissions from this sector. The airlines are concen­
inated. Such inflight strategies may cut down the emissions, and the
trating on strategies that would decrease the emissions like airport op­
biodegradable items increase about 80% recyclability.
erations, crew requirements, on-ground flight operations, baggage
operations, etc., which could improve sustainability. Various measures
like using recycled water from airports, aircraft’s operations for the
5.5. Fuel efficiency
airport landscaping, energy conservation practices, changes in the
design of the airport for making it energy-efficient structure, incorpo­
The current burning topic of the aviation industry is sustainable
rating renewable energy sources for the provision of electricity for
aviation fuels. Most of the costs occurred for an airline is because of the
different requirements, eco-friendly solutions for the staff and flyers for
fuel used for the travel and other on-ground operations. When blended
transportation needs, automated solutions for the baggage operations,
with traditional fossil fuels, these sustainable aviation fuels reduce
etc., All these accompanied aircraft operations would solve the majority
carbon emissions to a large extent (Chiaramonti, 2019). Exploring the
issue of the emissions from this sector.
development of these fuels will reduce the dependency of airlines on
conventional fuels by about 50%. Using these sustainable fuels reduces
5.4. In-flight operations the costs by a significant amount as they are made from crops, agri­
cultural wastes, etc., they are available at a cheaper rate than fossil fuels.
Certain efforts taken during the aircraft travel would save a lot of fuel But, there are many challenges ahead in the implementation, such as the
consumption and subsequent costs. In-flight operational strategies technological difficulties, availability of raw materials, and fuel effi­
mainly include switching engines during take-off and taxiing in, ciency, which are the major concerns for further progress. Most airlines

Fig. 7. Coding of Air India airline data.

7
V. Thummala and R.B. Hiremath Cleaner and Responsible Consumption 7 (2022) 100082

Fig. 8. Coding of Go Air airline data.

Fig. 9. Coding of Indigo airline data.

are working on developing reliable bio-jet fuels with increased 5.7. Carbon offsetting
efficiency.
The carbon offsetting initiatives may be a part of the airlines’ CSR or
consumer schemes. By implementing this type of scheme, the airlines
5.6. Consumer Action can achieve carbon credits by reducing their footprint in some other
form. For example, the construction of wind farms and solar grids would
Specific initiatives developed by some airlines are giving their pas­ supplement the Indian renewable energy capacity by reducing de­
sengers to contribute out of their choice towards cutting down of carbon pendency on fossil sources for electricity. Also, conducting sustainable
emissions. Some programs like “clean skies for tomorrow,” “Fatanpur development activities with IATA help helps us keep a check on fuel
wind farm,” “Solar micro-grid of Assam,” etc., the airlines take some management. Being in line with IATA’s carbon offset policies makes the
amount from the passengers at the time of booking them and ask them to airlines achieve sustainability goals in the future years.
participate if they are interested. Such type of initiatives makes a
considerable difference while implemented appropriately. The success 5.7.1. Qualitative analysis using NVIVO software outputs
of the consumer action programs mainly depends upon the design of the Coding is done on the available online information from different
scheme. According to some studies, mostly positive responses from the sources for different airlines considered for the thematic analysis. The
passengers will occur when the amount is low, asked at the initial stages process of coding is an analytical approach to classifying the data. The
of booking, and not interrupting their travel booking; chances increase term “code” cites a word or a phrase that encapsulates the core portion
when the cause is mentioned. The contribution also depends on the age, of the data. Coding is a procedure for accumulating all the relevant data
gender, type of travelers – regular or seasonal, awareness, etc. Thus, the into one box known as “Node.” The following diagrams (Figs. 6–12)
airlines shall design the scheme accordingly to find it comfortable for all depict the coding of information of the data related to different airlines
types of users.

8
V. Thummala and R.B. Hiremath Cleaner and Responsible Consumption 7 (2022) 100082

Fig. 10. Coding of Qatar airline data.

Fig. 11. Coding of Spice Jet airline data.

chosen. engine advances present major effective facilities for CO2 reductions.
The word cloud was developed from the NVivo software (which has Besides, another interesting perspective of the technological de­
the in-built feature of developing the word cloud) by importing the data velopments in the growth of sustainable aviation fuels produced from
which is derived from the airlines’ websites. the biological feedstock. These fuels have a great potential to reduce
The following diagram (Fig. 13) below depicts the word frequency of emissions up to 80% than conventional fuels (Neuling and Kaltschmitt,
the analysed data: 2018). So, it is crucial to establish connectivity between new, more
efficient technologies and green environmental ways of flying. Price is
6. Conclusion the most critical factor that decided the inclination of passengers to­
wards environmentally friendly habits (Çabuk et al., 2019). Thus, if the
This paper expands on the growing discussion on how the airlines price decreases, a more significant number of passengers will be
should re-work and improve their roles in their climate change re­ favourable towards sustainability. The airlines need to know the profiles
sponsibility. The aviation industry is acknowledging the expansion and and attitudes of environmentalist passengers to define their target
the urgent need for moving towards sustainable strategies. There shall market and develop market segmentation strategies within green mar­
be improvements in all the segments of the industry towards sustain­ keting activities. The regulatory policies to be introduced also play a
ability. The frame analysis shows how the airlines are working towards significant role in helping the airlines industries achieving sustainabil­
the sustainability and makes evident that there is a great need of con­ ity. The Indian government has proposed a Green Aviation Policy to
crete cooperation between the Government and the airlines to smoothen create a regulatory framework to remedy the environmental issues
the way towards the reduction on carbon emissions. Technology plays a created by the civil aviation industry by identifying key policy areas that
vital role in promoting sustainable development and reducing emissions require guiding principles and regulations. The Green Aviation Policy is
(Capoccitti et al., 2010). Especially we can see the improvement in the crucial for the civil aviation industry, significantly when the sector is
technology side with the innovation in the aircraft designs and radical rapidly growing and is poised to be the third-largest air passenger

9
V. Thummala and R.B. Hiremath Cleaner and Responsible Consumption 7 (2022) 100082

Fig. 12. Coding of Vistara airline data.

Fig. 13. Word Cloud diagram of Qualitative Analysis.

market by the end of 2029. Furthermore, India also adopted the CORSIA to the sustainable initiatives (Hagmann et al., 2015), their enthusiasm in
(Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation) contributing towards such initiatives, so that the airlines could design
(Chao et al., 2019). The scheme will be aiming to reduce emissions by more ways in attracting the passengers (Büchs, M., 2017).
50% by 2050 than that of 2005. This will be implemented in three
phases: the pilot phase from 2021 to 2023, the first operational phase Declaration of competing interest
shall be 2024 to 2026, and the second operating phase would be 2027 to
2035. Monitoring, reporting, and verification are some of the main The authors declare that they have no known competing financial
features of CORSIA. interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence
The Green Aviation Policy is a significant step taken by the Indian the work reported in this paper.
Government to keep emissions by the domestic aviation industry in
check. India will be seen as a role model in the fight against climate Data availability
change as no other country has a dedicated Green Aviation Policy to
tackle emissions by the airline industry. Finally, there shall be a coor­ Data will be made available on request.
dinating approach between all the industry segments. Then there shall
be aggregated decline in the total emissions of the aviation sector,
References
making it a viable environmental mode of transport for everyone.
There has not been much research conducted on how the Indian Bows, A., 2010. Aviation and climate change: confronting the challenge. Aeronaut. J.
airlines could achieve lesser carbon emissions through low-cost initia­ 114 (1158), 459–468.
tives (Ortega-Ruiz et al., 2020). Also, there is lack on how the Govern­ Brugnoli, A., Button, K., Martini, G., Scotti, D., 2015. Economic factors affecting the
registration of lower CO2 emitting aircraft in Europe. Transport. Res. Transport
ment and the airlines should come on one stand to make aviation a Environ. 38, 117–124.
carbon neutral sector. There is a need for more exploration on what Büchs, M., 2017. The role of values for voluntary reductions of holiday air travel.
areas the airlines focus so as to achieve sustainability in a low manner J. Sustain. Tourism 25 (2), 234–250.
Burns, P.M., Cowlishaw, C., 2014. Climate change discourses: how UK airlines
and there need to be more probe into how the passengers are responding communicate their case to the public. J. Sustain. Tourism 22 (5), 750–767.

10
V. Thummala and R.B. Hiremath Cleaner and Responsible Consumption 7 (2022) 100082

Çabuk, S., Güreş, N., Hilal, İ.N.A.N., Arslan, S., 2019. A survey on the attitudes of Rathore, H., Nandi, S., Jakhar, S.K., 2020. The future of Indian aviation from the
passengers towards green airlines. Yaşar Üniversitesi E-Dergisi 14 (55), 237–250 perspective of environment-centric regulations and policies. IIMB Management
colishaw. Review 32 (4), 434–447.
Capoccitti, S., Khare, A., Mildenberger, U., 2010. Aviation industry-mitigating climate Rice, C., Ragbir, N.K., Rice, S., Barcia, G., 2020. Willingness to pay for sustainable
change impacts through technology and policy. J. Technol. Manag. Innovat. 5 (2), aviation depends on ticket price, greenhouse gas reductions and gender. Technol.
66–75. Soc. 60, 101224.
Chao, H., Agusdinata, D.B., DeLaurentis, D., Stechel, E.B., 2019. Carbon offsetting and Rotaris, L., Giansoldati, M., Scorrano, M., 2020. Are air travellers willing to pay for
reduction scheme with sustainable aviation fuel options: fleet-level carbon emissions reducing or offsetting carbon emissions? Evidence from Italy. Transport. Res. Pol.
impacts for US airlines. Transport. Res. Transport Environ. 75, 42–56. Pract. 142, 71–84.
Ferrulli, P., 2016. Green Airport Design Evaluation (GrADE)–methods and tools Ryley, T., Baumeister, S., Coulter, L., 2020. Climate change influences on aviation: a
improving infrastructure planning. Transport. Res. Procedia 14, 3781–3790. literature review. Transport Pol. 92, 55–64.
Gössling, S., Higham, J., 2021. The low-carbon imperative: destination management Santa, S.L.B., Ribeiro, J.M.P., Mazon, G., Schneider, J., Barcelos, R.L., de Andrade, J.B.S.
under urgent climate change. J. Trav. Res. 60 (6), 1167–1179. O., 2020. A Green Airport Model: Proposition Based on Social and Environmental.
Hagmann, C., Semeijn, J., Vellenga, D.B., 2015. Exploring the green image of airlines: Staples, M.D., Malina, R., Suresh, P., Hileman, J.I., Barrett, S.R., 2018. Aviation CO2
passenger perceptions and airline choice. J. Air Transport. Manag. 43, 37–45. emissions reductions from the use of alternative jet fuels. Energy Pol. 114, 342–354.
Hari, T.K., Yaakob, Z., Binitha, N.N., 2015. Aviation biofuel from renewable resources: Sukumaran, S., Sudhakar, K., 2017. Fully solar powered airport: a case study of Cochin
routes, opportunities and challenges. Renew. Sustain. Energy Rev. 42, 1234–1244. International airport. J. Air Transport. Manag. 62, 176–188.
Lo, P.L., Martini, G., Porta, F., Scotti, D., 2020. The determinants of CO2 emissions of air Teoh, L.E., Khoo, H.L., 2016. Green air transport system: an overview of issues, strategies
transport passenger traffic: an analysis of Lombardy (Italy). Transport Pol. 91, and challenges. KSCE J. Civ. Eng. 20 (3), 1040–1052.
108–119. Terrenoire, E., Hauglustaine, D.A., Gasser, T., Penanhoat, O., 2019. The contribution of
Macintosh, A., Wallace, L., 2009. International aviation emissions to 2025: can emissions carbon dioxide emissions from the aviation sector to future climate change. Environ.
be stabilized without restricting demand? Energy Pol. 37 (1), 264–273. Res. Lett. 14 (8), 084019.
Neuling, U., Kaltschmitt, M., 2018. Techno-economic and environmental analysis of Whitmarsh, L., Capstick, S., Moore, I., Köhler, J., Le Quéré, C., 2020. Use of aviation by
aviation biofuels. Fuel Process. Technol. 171, 54–69 c. climate change researchers: structural influences, personal attitudes, and
Ortega-Ruiz, G., Mena-Nieto, A., García-Ramos, J.E., 2020. Is India on the right pathway information provision. Global Environ. Change 65, 102184.
to reduce CO2 emissions? Decomposing an enlarged Kaya identity using the LMDI Yilmaz, N., Atmanli, A., 2017. Sustainable alternative fuels in aviation. Energy 140,
method for the period 1990–2016. Sci. Total Environ. 737, 139638. 1378–1386.

11