The airline says that since 27 March it has purchased the carbon credits necessary to offset the CO2 emissions for business class flights and flights in Excellence packages booked with LuxairTours.  Photo: Anthony Dehez

The airline says that since 27 March it has purchased the carbon credits necessary to offset the CO2 emissions for business class flights and flights in Excellence packages booked with LuxairTours.  Photo: Anthony Dehez

Luxair will look to reduce CO2 emissions by introducing a new carbon offset programme for its premium flights as part of efforts to play its part in the airline sector achieving carbon neutrality by 2050.

Passengers who book a Luxair business class fight or LuxairTours Excellence package flight will be contributing to the national airline’s new carbon offset programme. Carbon neutral products on Luxair’s website are accompanied by a logo indicating that they’re part of the company’s initiative, a press release said on Tuesday.

The airline said that since 27 March it has purchased the carbon credits necessary to offset the CO2 emissions in the two segments. The company’s contribution is allocated to certified projects aiming at developing sustainable management of renewable energy, forest conservation in South-East Asia and the improvement of the cooking stove industry in Rwanda in order to enhance the living conditions of local communities while reducing the demand for biomass.

Luxair has aligned the projects it is involved in with the UN Sustainable Development Goals and the aviation sector’s target of achieving carbon neutrality by 2050 to which it signed on following the Aviation Summit in Toulouse in February.

The company will look at fleet renewal, flight optimisation and the reduction of single-use plastics on board its flights as other means of reducing its environmental footprint. It is also evaluating the possibility of allowing customers to voluntarily offset their CO2 emissions when purchasing a ticket.

In January, Luxembourg became one of the seven co-signatories of . A draft regulation--called RefuelEU Aviation initiative--which is part of the Fit for 55 package meant to bring greenhouse gas emissions down by 55% by 2030, sets minimum thresholds for all fuel suppliers to gradually offer more renewable and sustainable fuels to operators in EU airport. However, Luxembourg alongside other other six co-signatories estimated there the EU needs to set more ambitious targets.