Abstract
As airlines expect to recover from financial losses due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the risk of excessive carbon emission continues to approach along with the forecasted business restoration in the post-pandemic era after 2022. According to a report from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in 2022, transportation is responsible for 29 percent of greenhouse gas emissions. The United State Department of Transportation (U.S. DoT) reported that from 1990 to 2006, the entire transportation system’s emissions increased by 27.6 percent while aircraft emissions decreased by 5 percent. This observation sheds light on the benefits of adopting pragmatic practices to encourage both environmental conservation and pollutant reduction. While global organizations like International Air Transport Association (IATA) and International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) fully promulgate the net-zero emission aviation environment, our research is to examine the tangible benefits and challenges of a worldwide carbon credits system in aviation. Using qualitative analysis and inter-rater criterion, the authors discover: 1) the strategies of air service providers responding to the carbon credits system; and 2) the noticeable concerns or challenges when abiding by the carbon credits system. While the airline enplanement is exponentially recovering from the COVID-19 impact, engineering innovations of aircraft play an important role in reducing aircraft CO2 emission, in addition to the optimization of cockpit maneuver procedures, air traffic management, biofuels, electric ground vehicles, and schedule network planning. While most flag airlines possess a sufficient budget to pay off emission debts, small or low-cost carriers may do otherwise.