DALLAS — Air New Zealand (NZ) has abandoned a 2030 commitment to reduce carbon emissions, citing challenges in obtaining more efficient planes and sustainable aviation fuel.

The airline had embarked on what is called its "most important journey yet – Flight NZ0" aimed at finding "a more sustainable way to connect with the world and reach our goal of net zero carbon emissions by the year 2050."

Now, NZ becomes the first major carrier to drop such a climate goal. The airline stated that it is working on a new short-term aim while remaining dedicated to the industry-wide goal of reaching net zero emissions by 2050.

If you visit the carrier's Flight NZ0 page, all you'll now see is "This site is currently under review."

The airline had set a 2030 emissions reduction target of about 29% in 2022, much higher than the industry's 5% reduction target for the same period.

The Problem with Sustainable Aviation Fuels

Regardless of the fact that airlines have struggled to purchase enough of them, Sustainable Aviation Fuels (SAF) are an important aspect of the industry's strategy to reduce emissions.

In an in-flight study carried out last month, an Airbus A350 using 100% SAF demonstrated significant reductions in soot particle emissions and contrail ice crystal formation compared to conventional aviation fuel.

That is all well and good, but last summer, an assessment by the Center for Biological Diversity (CBD) concluded that it will be difficult to accomplish the White House target of meeting 100% of U.S. jet fuel demand with biofuels by 2050 due to sustainability and supply issues.

According to the report, the majority of the feedstocks being evaluated for the production of SAF would have a negative impact on the environment or the climate. The report adds that the development of renewable fuels alone cannot achieve the ambitious SAF production target.

“Once you examine the data, the aviation biofuels boon looks more like a boondoggle,” said John Fleming, Ph.D., a scientist at the Center’s Climate Law Institute and the lead author of the report.

In other words, producing SAF can be as harmful to the environment as using regular jet fuel.

The Problem with Current Aircraft

To further complicate the matter, setting a 2050 target can seem disingenuous given that airplanes last, on average, a little over 20 years and that technologies won't likely be widely available for fleet adoption until the 2040s.

The above is compounded by the fact that airlines are experiencing delays in new aircraft deliveries, "with both Boeing and Airbus under-delivering new jets over the last few years, largely due to snags in the wider supply chains of the manufacturers," according to Cirium analyst Ellis Taylor as cited by the BBC.

The aviation industry is projected to account for approximately 2% of global carbon dioxide emissions, which airlines have been working to reduce through measures such as adopting renewable fuel and upgrading outdated planes.

IATA's goal for net zero in 2050 is still in effect and airlines are not cutting back on that pledge. However, NZ' pullback is a signal that lowering CO2 emissions is a battle on many fronts and that the industry needs more practical allies.