Airbus is the world’s leading civil aviation firm and also has a presence in helicopter manufacturing and the defence and space industries. Guillaume Gressin (EDHEC Master 2003) has spent the last 16 years of his career there, based in France and overseas. He now heads up the strategy and commercial operations team for Latin America and the Caribbean, and here he explains the projects currently underway for manufacturers in the aviation industry in a low-carbon world, with 2050 more than just a distant horizon. 

Tell us about your current position and responsibilities.

I cover a zone with 1300 employees targeting 3 main pillars: public relations with governments and public bodies, as a corollary of that, the industrial and strategic development of aviation going forward, particularly in terms of decarbonisation; and lastly governance. 

What are the interconnections between strategy and commercial development in your profession?

The two are inextricably linked. As soon as you look at commercial development, strategic needs evolve. If all you do is adapt, you remain highly operational but you might miss out on the essential. The theory goes that a good strategy should allow you to move from A to B in 5 to 10 years. Of course, in a world of great uncertainty, that path is always strewn with obstacles. The raison d’être of Airbus defined 5 years ago (“To be the pioneers of a sustainable aerospace industry for a safe and more united world”) enables us to set out a long-term vision followed by a regional strategy. 

What place does the soft power of States occupy in Airbus’s strategic decisions?

There is soft power in civil operations and hard power when States themselves are our client, particularly in the aerospace, defence and helicopter (sea or mountain rescue search operations) industries. The impact of States on the development of aviation is essential. Together, we assess the regulations that will best meet their own decarbonisation objectives as well as our own. A multinational has the advantage of being able to avoid counter-productive decisions. The most advanced regions in terms of aviation safety or decarbonisation help governments reach complex decisions that require expertise. Very often, we put States in contact with expert bodies working in the areas concerned and who can help them develop their own regulations. 

So can Airbus influence political decisions? 

Absolutely! My work is so fascinating because I see the direct impact it can have. At Airbus, we share our plan with the vast majority of industrial players in the sector. Our objective by 2030 is a 63% reduction in our carbon emissions generated by production compared to 2015 (the year of the Paris Agreement), even though our business is growing. Our decarbonisation objectives are now annual with a view to staggering our carbon neutrality target in 2050. That means investing in our various industrial chains and putting in place new decision-making chains. 

Our ambitions go even further, with the aim of a 46% reduction by 2035 – validated last month by the Science-based Targets Initiative after 2 years’ work – in the carbon impact of our products on the energy we use, throughout their life cycle. We have both a precise vision and roadmap. We don’t hide behind future innovations.

What levers can you use to decarbonise aviation?

In terms of innovation, today’s planes have engines that consume up to 25% less than 15 years ago. The composite materials used are lighter, and we are also working on the aerodynamics of aircraft. 

Next, we are working to gradually replace fossil energy sources with new biofuels that use organic or public waste, or even seaweed, as well as synthetic fuel based on green hydrogen. According to the data of the Air Transport Action Group (ATAG), biofuels should represent a little over 50% of the global solution for carbon neutrality by 2050.

We also need to optimise flight times and avoid landing and take-off queues, particularly in clogged airports, mainly using artificial intelligence and big data.

Manufacturing always produces carbon emissions, which is why we are also working on residual aspects to compensate, having first sought other ways to reduce emissions. Using hydrogen, the most widely available chemical element, 3 times more powerful in energy terms and around 3 times lighter per unit of mass than traditional fuel, but also 3 to 4 times more voluminous, we are working to accelerate disruptive innovations. We expect the first hydrogen civil airplane to be delivered in 2035.

Does responsibility for decarbonising society fall above all on manufacturers? 

No, it’s a collective effort. If a hydrogen aeroplane exists in 2035 but green hydrogen hasn’t arrived in airports, then we won’t have made much of a reduction. So changing the ecosystem, with financing and development, needs to be tackled now hand-in-hand with States. We need to identify the first airports – for both departures and arrivals – that will be equipped with this technology and help our clients to gain access to hydrogen-based fuels. The planes being made today or ordered for the next 10 years do not use hydrogen technology. They will continue to fly for 25 years and will need biofuel. Organizations are helping airports with their development roadmap. The International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO), part of the UN, brings together the various industrial sectors at an international level. It reached an innovative agreement last November on the Net Zero vision for 2050 for aviation as a whole, and now countries are committed to this decarbonisation process. It is above all by setting the right example and being credible in the commitments we make that the whole industry can move forward. That’s why we have set objectives validated by the strictest criteria.

And the objective is to bring other industry players on board these decarbonisation efforts …

Exactly. Biofuels currently represent less than 0.1% of production. The technology is well established, but the return on investment is initially harder to achieve, like solar power 20 years ago. When it comes to biofuel and hydrogen, the innovations are astonishing, we are seeing an industrial revolution in clean tech. The costs will fall as projects emerge. What remains to be done is to boost the production of these biofuels with certification. States play that role as an accelerator and guarantee a smooth transition through their regulatory approach.

Is Latin America a major new actor in renewable energy?

It certainly has the capacity to become one. There is a highly abundant biomass that as yet is underutilised and vast territories where the wind blows constantly. Chile is playing a pioneering role installing wind turbines and solar panels on its land. The Atacama desert has one of the highest solar indexes anywhere in the world. This means renewable electricity is affordable, which is a huge competitive advantage. Chile even plans to be a net exporter of green hydrogen as its production is expected to exceed the country’s needs.

And what about biofuel?

The historic expertise in oil refineries in Latin America is similar to the engineering needed for biofuel. 

However, Latin American States have many priorities in social reform, healthcare, education, the economy and infrastructure, not to mention sustainable development. Once again, it is essential for parties to talk to and understand one another so they can move forward together. That was the basis of a competition we launched last autumn in Mexico involving airlines and semi-public bodies, with a view to demonstrating the appeal of biofuels for the economy and sovereignty. Mexican universities and research centres were called upon to suggest sustainable fuel production solutions. Of the 39 submissions, 3 received awards at the Famex aeronautics trade fair in late April in Mexico for projects based on local plants: agave, moringas and Jatropha.

In terms of innovation, what are the relationships between aerospace and other sectors?

The different industries used to be quite compartmentalised, but we are seeing changes. Is this because of new ways of working, or is it now easier to connect with complementary industries that were not necessarily partners? We have signed cooperation agreements with companies working in hydrogen, the automobile industry and the energy sectors, and we encounter a highly diverse range of firms working on the recovery and processing of seaweed, microplastics or sustainable biofuels. We are also seeing a dimensional change in today’s “technological simplicity”, particularly in crosscutting areas like decarbonisation. It’s no longer possible to work in your own little corner, reinventing the wheel. Paradoxically, we need competition to accelerate innovation, but also cooperation to advance more quickly.