The Rise of Green Travel - how we will travel sustainably in 2028 (not 2050!)

A green journey: Flying from Hamilton, New Zealand, to Long Beach, California in July 2028

Fast forward five years to 2028: what might a journey to the 2028 Summer Olympics look like? Perhaps from New Zealand to Los Angeles? In particular, where will aviation be on the road to net zero, and what differences will passengers notice?

While most analysis evaluates whether we will get to net zero in aviation by 2050, we at SimpliFlying decided to think short-term for our latest report, The Rise of Green Travel. We evaluated a multitude of technologies - from SAF to eVTOLs to electric aircraft, that are on track to be piloted in the next five years.

We’ve chosen Hamilton, New Zealand, as our starting point as it links to a comment made by Air New Zealand CEO Greg Foran at the 2022 APEX/IFSA EXPO. When asked about electric flights, he responded by saying that you could be “thinking about it like an Uber. It’s basically just shuttling backwards and forwards between Hamilton and Auckland, and it’s maybe going every 30 minutes, and you turn up and pay for it when you get on the plane. Why not?”

So, let’s start our journey in Hamilton and assume that a Hamilton-based couple wants to go to Los Angeles for the 2028 Summer Olympics.?

1 - The booking process

First of all, consumer perceptions around aviation and climate change will inevitably impact the booking process.

Opinion polls have consistently shown high levels of concern about climate change, especially in Europe, North America, and the Asia-Pacific region. In 2022 they also showed growing awareness about aviation’s contribution to global warming.

It’s a reasonable assumption that this trend will only accelerate, especially given the high likelihood of further extreme weather events between now and 2028.

As a result, by 2028 we may start to see those perceptions about climate change and air travel start to translate into action, where travellers actively choose the least carbon-intensive way of flying

United Airlines, when launching its new $100 million Sustainable Aviation Fuel fund in February 2023, announced that it would be guiding passengers to the least polluting options in the United app booking path.? By 2028, we expect that to be a common feature of almost all airline apps.??

Furthermore, we may see booking sites use “green coding” to ensure that the code requires the fewest processor instructions and takes up as little memory space as possible to reduce energy consumption.

The couple in question subscribes to the idea put forward by the ICCT's Dan Rutherford , of ‘Fly Like a Nerd’ - New (Newer Aircraft), Economy, Regular (medium-sized aircraft, not giant planes like A380s) and Direct.

And here, there are direct routes available for them. Air New Zealand started flying direct between Auckland and Los Angeles in 2022 with a Boeing 777 and Delta in 2023 with an A350-900. Airbus claims the latter aircraft offers 25% less fuel burn and CO2 emissions per seat. So we will assume that our couple takes one of these two direct routes available.

2 - The connecting flight

First of all, the couple needs to get to New Zealand’s main international airport in Auckland. In 2022 and 2023, Air New Zealand brought a number of next-generation aircraft companies on board with its “Mission Next Generation Aircraft” programme, which include Eviation, BETA, Heart Aerospace, Embraer, ATR and Universal Hydrogen.??

?Let’s assume that the couple takes an Eviation Alice, the nine-seater commuter aircraft due to come into service in 2027. They turn up in Hamilton, where Alice services to Auckland run with Air New Zealand every half hour.?

The very distinctive looking all-electric Alice aircraft offers the couple SkyView panoramic windows with individually controlled electro-chromatic shades and seats with a 32-inch pitch. When the Points Guy looked at a prototype of the cabin in 2021, he complimented the side-mounted wireless smartphone chargers, the touch-enabled reading lights and the 1-1 configuration. The couple's first short flight will be comfortable, low-noise and zero-emissions – a perfect start to the long journey ahead.

3 - At the airport

The couple arrives at Auckland International Airport (AKL). By 2028, AKL will be well toward achieving its 2030 Net Zero goal. Some of the steps the airport has been taking to achieve its goal have been using electricity generated from a mix of on- and off-site renewable generation (target date 2024), phasing out the use of natural gas in the terminal through the replacement of natural gas boilers with electric alternatives and electrifying the vehicle fleet.

AKL also has a goal to reduce Scope 3 emissions. This includes providing an electric aircraft charging infrastructure and supplying ground power units (GPUs) and pre-conditioned air (PCA) at all international gates so aircraft can connect to New Zealand’s low-carbon electricity supply instead of burning jet fuel while at the gate.?

If flying in a premium cabin, the couple may decide to visit a lounge. Lounges themselves are increasingly having an eye on sustainability. For example, the new Skyteam lounge in Sydney, Australia, has been built with an eye on sustainability including eliminating single-use plastics and water conservation features.

4 - The experience on board?

In 2028, our couple flying to LA is unlikely to find single-use plastics on board the flight. Air New Zealand, for example, ran trials about their removal as early as 2021. Meanwhile, Delta, the other airline flying direct between LAX and AKL, started the plastic removals process even earlier, in 2018.

In addition to single-use plastics not being part of the flight experience, the couple is likely to benefit from in-flight items made with sustainability in mind. For instance, in 2022, Delta debuted Mexican artisan-made amenity kits from “Someone, Somewhere.” By eliminating five single-use plastic items such as zippers and packaging, these amenity kits help reduce Delta’s annual plastic use by up to 90,000 pounds. Plus, the traditional loom techniques and artisanal production processes also eliminate waste.

On the overnight Delta flight from Auckland to Los Angeles, the couple will also be using blankets made from more than 100 recycled bottles. Meanwhile, the seat itself might be made from eLeather, a fusion of many small scrap pieces of real leather glued together to form one large homogenous material, making it much lighter yet stronger while reusing old materials.

Want to know more? SimpliFlying CEO Shashank Nigam discussed sustainable aircraft seating with Mark Hiller , CEO of Recaro Seating, as part of the Sustainability In The Air Podcast.

5 - The final leg from LAX to Long Beach

Arriving at LAX, the aircraft is serviced using electric ground vehicles. Then, when getting off the aircraft, the couple doesn’t find any single-use plastic bottles on sale in the airport stores after LAX banned their sale in 2023.? Many airlines by 2028 may in fact give non-plastic reusable bottles to passengers to keep, especially in premium cabins.

The couple clears immigration and customs. In late 2022, US customs agents were trialling a facial recognition system at Orlando International Airport. It’s likely that by 2028, this technology will have found its way to LAX.

The couple then goes to the Vertiport to catch their eVTOL to Long Beach. At the Vertiport, they have two options – a flight with Archer’s Midnight aircraft or Joby’s eVTOL. Both are all electric, with the electricity from the Vertiport being 100% renewable.

By 2028, we expect to see these final leg eVTOL services offered as part of an airline ticket. Through its links with United, Archer is likely to be integrated with Star Alliance Airlines like Air New Zealand; meanwhile, Joby has Delta on board as an investor and partner. Each eVTOL will be able to take our couple, plus two other passengers and all of their luggage.??

The couple finally arrives in Long Beach, the Olympic venue for seven sports, including handball, sailing, rowing and the triathlon.

Here they take advantage of LA’s new transit infrastructure, which includes electric buses and a new light rail line.?

Meanwhile, they stay in a hotel that has pledged to become carbon neutral by 2030, increasingly receives power from solar panels on the roof, has phased out single-use plastics, and sources locally grown and produced food where possible to cut down on food miles.

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Click here to download The Rise of Green Travel report for in-depth analysis on how the above green journey will become a reality in 2028.