Boarding an Air France Paris-Toulouse flight. “Ladies and gentlemen, good morning. I am your captain”. Laurent Lafontan gives the passengers some information about the flight but this time, it is not a question of geography: “Today, our fuel consumption will be around 2.6 liters per 100 km per passenger. We estimate then to reduce our fuel consumption by 2% to 3%.”
A reduction that has become a necessity when the aeronautics sector has a bad reputation in terms of ecology. According to a study by the Berger firm, the number of air trips could even drop by 20% once the crisis is over because of the environmental concerns of passengers. Air transport is looking to find the solution and to begin with, to change its piloting methods.
Return to the ground, before departure. As head of development at Air France, Laurent Lafontan is at the forefront of research into eco-piloting: “Eco as ‘ecology’ and as ‘economy’ which often go hand in hand in the airline industry. When I save fuel, I save in terms of CO2 emissions.” In front of him, the new flight instrument for any pilot. “Today, the tablet and the application are tools that the pilot uses, whether at the stage of flight preparation to determine his fuel strategy or during the realization of his flight”, says Laurent Lafontan.
By clicking on parameters, the pilot can see the fuel saved and choose taxiing on a single engine. It can also choose better trajectories during uphill and downhill flight. Daily actions that have an explained result Laurent Lafontan: “We manage to save at Air France up to 3 to 4% of annual fuel consumption. Knowing that 1% is 45,000 tonnes.”
The tablets have also made it possible to save 20 million sheets of paper and to lighten the planes accordingly. The pilots are not the only ones mobilized, there is the electrification of the equipment on the ground, the maintenance of the planes or a better management of the water on board. So many measures that allow the company to target quantified objectives. “The awareness has been a little harsh and drastic, says Philippe Lacroute, spokesperson for Air France pilots. The airline industry is often overlooked, but it is a sector that is very involved. The company is committed to reducing its pollution by 15% by 2030 and that is net zero emissions by 2050. “
While they give results quickly, the effects of eco-piloting are limited in particular by the density of air traffic. To go further, aeronautics must rely on developing technologies: biofuels or one day, perhaps, the hydrogen plane which requires infrastructures much heavier than tablets.