Over the past months, a few Member States’ ministers have expressed a willingness to discuss legislation to restrict Business aviation flights, invoking sustainability reasons. EBAA and GAMA are concerned with such an approach that would be detrimental both to the sector’s decarbonization strategy and to the essential role in providing point-to-point air mobility and connectivity in the EU and globally.

Business aviation has been leading aviation decarbonization with the Business Aviation Commitment on Climate Change since 2009 – 6 years prior to the Paris Agreement. This Commitment has since been updated and is now aimed at achieving net-zero CO2 emissions by 2050, along with maintaining carbon-neutral growth from 2020 and improving fuel efficiency by 2% per year from 2020 until 2030 for future aircraft, building upon our record of 1.9% per year over the last decade. These ambitions are made possible through technological advancements, the use of Sustainable Aviation Fuels (SAF), more efficient operations and improved infrastructure, in conjunction with global market-based measures. All these efforts require massive investments, which are made possible by EBAA’s and GAMA’s members operating Business aviation aircraft. Less income translates in lower ability to invest in decarbonization, which would push back our 2050 target. So, in consequence, restricting our ability to fly negatively impacts the industry’s ability to connect Europe, as well as to decarbonize at pace.

The variety of missions flown by Business Aviation aircraft have one common goal: providing point-to-point air mobility in the EU and globally. The European Business aviation sector’s point-to-point air mobility differs greatly from the commercial air transport system, articulated around hubs, or larger airports. We help governments, businesses, and individuals to fly in a flexible, safe and timely manner, and are in many cases the only available mode of transport for connecting outermost regions. Business Aviation connects over 1,400 airports in Europe, compared to only 500 served by commercial airlines. This includes medical flights, relief work, and even firefighting and border-control. EU governments, businesses and citizens not only count on our members’ services but also often simply depend on it. The ability to fly connect when all else fails was clearly demonstrated during the COVID-19 pandemic when both Business Aviation and Air Cargo flights kept Europe moving.

In short: we fly when or where others cannot.