Samenvatting

The objective of this research is to enable its reader to gain comprehension on what the consequences of the European Emission Trading Scheme are for the airline industry. The main research question that is answered by means of this paper is: how is the airline industry affected by the European Emission Trading Scheme?
In order to understand where the European Emission Trading Scheme as a policy instrument stems from, it is important to know what has been happening on the international stage concerning climatic change and the EU policies that evolved from these international developments.
Therefore, chapter 1 gives an overview of the international climate change negotiations and the EU policy regarding climate change. Main points constantly brought forward in these negotiations are
that global temperature rise should stay below 2 degrees compared to pre-industrial levels and that a global legally binding agreement is needed in order to keep emission levels acceptable. Also, this
chapter points out that a cornerstone of the EU's climate policy is the European Emissions Trading Scheme, also known as the EU ETS or ETS, which deals with emissions from a variety of different
industries and activities.
In order to fully comprehend the impacts of the ETS on the airline industry it is important for the reader to know the basic rules of this scheme. Hence, chapter 2 serves as an introduction to the
European Emission Trading Scheme. The main idea behind the scheme is that companies and installations receive a specific number of allowances, dependent on their level of greenhouse gas emissions. These allowances enable the company to emit one tonne of CO2. A company that emits more than the allowances it received can buy extra allowances and a company that has allowances left can sell these to other operators within the scheme. This possibility of selling and buying creates a trading market. In this chapter it is also mentioned that from the beginning of 2012, the airline industry has been added to the scheme.
Chapter 3 looks into the impact of the European Emission Trading Scheme on the airline industry. Firstly, it points out that the airline industry was included because of the fact that, according to the European Commission and some NGO's, negotiations on aviation emissions reduction done by the International Civil Aviation Organization did not lead to specific steps to start reducing these
emissions in practice. Moreover, it gives an overview of impacts the European Emission Trading Scheme has on the airline industry.
The conclusion gives an answer to the main research question: 'how is the airline industry affected by the European Emission Trading Scheme?' During the research it becomes clear that the airline
industry is affected by the European Emission Trading Scheme in different ways. For example, operating costs will increase for airline companies, ticket prices will become higher and it is
becoming more and more challenging for European airlines to maintain their competitive position towards other market operators. However, the severity of these impacts on airlines depends on different factors, such as its business model, fleet composition and position in the market.
In the last chapter recommendations are given, which includes suggestions to the airline industry as to other ways of reducing their emissions. For example, airlines could have a serious look to their frequency of flights in comparison with their load factor. They should ask themselves if they can serve the same amount of passengers with fewer flights. For example, instead of flying 10 times a
day with a load factor of 75%, they could maybe also fly around 7 times a day with a load factor of around 100%. This means they would drop 2 flights a day, which reduces emissions and saves money. Also, it is recommended for the international community to boost discussions on a global climate agreement.