IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/jaitra/v62y2017icp10-17.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Airline fuel usage and carbon emissions: Determining factors

Author

Listed:
  • Brueckner, Jan K.
  • Abreu, Chrystyane

Abstract

Using annual data on individual US airlines over the 1995–2015 period, this paper presents regression results relating an airline's total fuel usage to seven variables: the available ton miles of capacity (passengers plus freight and mail) provided by the airline; the average seat capacity of its aircraft, average stage length (flight distance); average load factor (measured by weight); the average vintage (construction year) of its aircraft; the percentage of the airline's flights that are delayed; and the average annual fuel price. The results show how fuel usage and carbon emissions depend on a small set of crucial variables. The estimated fuel-price effect allows the emissions impact of an optimal emissions charge to be computed, and the estimated delay effect shows the emissions impact of an industry-wide reduction in flight delays. The regression model is generated from a theoretical framework.

Suggested Citation

  • Brueckner, Jan K. & Abreu, Chrystyane, 2017. "Airline fuel usage and carbon emissions: Determining factors," Journal of Air Transport Management, Elsevier, vol. 62(C), pages 10-17.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:jaitra:v:62:y:2017:i:c:p:10-17
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jairtraman.2017.01.004
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0969699716302976
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.jairtraman.2017.01.004?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to look for a different version below or search for a different version of it.

    Other versions of this item:

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Miyoshi, C. & Mason, K.J., 2009. "The carbon emissions of selected airlines and aircraft types in three geographic markets," Journal of Air Transport Management, Elsevier, vol. 15(3), pages 138-147.
    2. Brueckner, Jan K. & Zhang, Anming, 2010. "Airline emission charges: Effects on airfares, service quality, and aircraft design," Transportation Research Part B: Methodological, Elsevier, vol. 44(8-9), pages 960-971, September.
    3. Pai, Vivek, 2010. "On the factors that affect airline flight frequency and aircraft size," Journal of Air Transport Management, Elsevier, vol. 16(4), pages 169-177.
    4. Morrell, Peter, 2009. "The potential for European aviation CO2 emissions reduction through the use of larger jet aircraft," Journal of Air Transport Management, Elsevier, vol. 15(4), pages 151-157.
    5. Achim I. Czerny, 2015. "The Role of Capital Costs for Airline Responses to Emission Charges," Journal of Transport Economics and Policy, University of Bath, vol. 49(3), pages 475-495, July.
    6. Zou, Bo & Elke, Matthew & Hansen, Mark & Kafle, Nabin, 2014. "Evaluating air carrier fuel efficiency in the US airline industry," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 59(C), pages 306-330.
    7. Albers, Sascha & Bühne, Jan-André & Peters, Heiko, 2009. "Will the EU-ETS instigate airline network reconfigurations?," Journal of Air Transport Management, Elsevier, vol. 15(1), pages 1-6.
    8. Swan, William M. & Adler, Nicole, 2006. "Aircraft trip cost parameters: A function of stage length and seat capacity," Transportation Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation Review, Elsevier, vol. 42(2), pages 105-115, March.
    9. Scheelhaase, Janina D. & Grimme, Wolfgang G., 2007. "Emissions trading for international aviation—an estimation of the economic impact on selected European airlines," Journal of Air Transport Management, Elsevier, vol. 13(5), pages 253-263.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Mayer, Robert & Ryley, Tim & Gillingwater, David, 2015. "Eco-positioning of airlines: Perception versus actual performance," Journal of Air Transport Management, Elsevier, vol. 44, pages 82-89.
    2. Brueckner, Jan K. & Abreu, Chrystyane, 2020. "Does the fuel-conservation effect of higher fuel prices appear at both the aircraft-model and aggregate airline levels?," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 197(C).
    3. D’Alfonso, Tiziana & Jiang, Changmin & Bracaglia, Valentina, 2016. "Air transport and high-speed rail competition: Environmental implications and mitigation strategies," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 92(C), pages 261-276.
    4. Miyoshi, Chikage, 2014. "Assessing the equity impact of the European Union Emission Trading Scheme on an African airline," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 33(C), pages 56-64.
    5. Brueckner, Jan K. & Zhang, Anming, 2010. "Airline emission charges: Effects on airfares, service quality, and aircraft design," Transportation Research Part B: Methodological, Elsevier, vol. 44(8-9), pages 960-971, September.
    6. Isabelle Laplace & Chantal Roucolle & Aliya Ussinova, 2017. "An analysis of the impact of larger aircraft (A-380) on flight frequency," Post-Print hal-02009250, HAL.
    7. Pagoni, Ioanna & Psaraki-Kalouptsidi, Voula, 2016. "The impact of carbon emission fees on passenger demand and air fares: A game theoretic approach," Journal of Air Transport Management, Elsevier, vol. 55(C), pages 41-51.
    8. Isabelle Laplace & Chantal Roucolle & Aliya Ussinova, 2016. "The Analysis of Impact of Larger Aircraft A-380 on Frequency of Flights," Post-Print hal-01424922, HAL.
    9. Estelle Malavolti & Marion Podesta, 2011. "Inclusion of the aviation sector into the emission trading scheme : an economic analysis," Post-Print hal-01022239, HAL.
    10. Tiziana D'Alfonso & Changmin Jiang & Valentina Bracaglia, 2015. "Air transport and high-speed rail competition: environmental implications and mitigation strategies," DIAG Technical Reports 2015-15, Department of Computer, Control and Management Engineering, Universita' degli Studi di Roma "La Sapienza".
    11. Kang, Yicheng & Liao, Sha & Jiang, Changmin & D’Alfonso, Tiziana, 2022. "Synthetic control methods for policy analysis: Evaluating the effect of the European Emission Trading System on aviation supply," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 162(C), pages 236-252.
    12. Miyoshi, Chikage & Fukui, Hideki, 2018. "Measuring the rebound effects in air transport: The impact of jet fuel prices and air carriers’ fuel efficiency improvement of the European airlines," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 112(C), pages 71-84.
    13. Chen, Yilin & Hou, Meng & Wang, Kun & Yang, Hangjun, 2023. "Government interventions in regional airline markets based on aircraft size—Welfare and environmental implications," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 169(C).
    14. Armin Ibitz, 2015. "Towards a global scheme for carbon emissions reduction in aviation: China’s role in blocking the extension of the European Union’s Emissions Trading Scheme," Asia Europe Journal, Springer, vol. 13(2), pages 113-130, June.
    15. Ko, Young Dae, 2019. "The airfare pricing and seat allocation problem in full-service carriers and subsidiary low-cost carriers," Journal of Air Transport Management, Elsevier, vol. 75(C), pages 92-102.
    16. Sheu, Jiuh-Biing, 2014. "Airline ambidextrous competition under an emissions trading scheme – A reference-dependent behavioral perspective," Transportation Research Part B: Methodological, Elsevier, vol. 60(C), pages 115-145.
    17. Presto, Felix & Gollnick, Volker & Lau, Alexander & Lütjens, Klaus, 2022. "Flight frequency regulation and its temporal implications," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 116(C), pages 106-118.
    18. Sheng, Dian & Li, Zhi-Chun & Fu, Xiaowen & Gillen, David, 2017. "Modeling the effects of unilateral and uniform emission regulations under shipping company and port competition," Transportation Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation Review, Elsevier, vol. 101(C), pages 99-114.
    19. Spiritus, Kevin & Lehmann, Etienne & Renes, Sander & Zoutman, Floris T., 0. "Optimal taxation with multiple incomes and types," Theoretical Economics, Econometric Society.
    20. Hansen, Mark & Liu, Yi, 2015. "Airline competition and market frequency: A comparison of the s-curve and schedule delay models," Transportation Research Part B: Methodological, Elsevier, vol. 78(C), pages 301-317.

    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • Q50 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics - - - General

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:jaitra:v:62:y:2017:i:c:p:10-17. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.journals.elsevier.com/journal-of-air-transport-management/ .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.