23 January 2024: Last week, ERA was pleased to visit SATA Group in the beautiful Azores for the Sustainable Regional Aviation Forum which we co-organised. Many stakeholders and policymakers gathered for this forum to discuss the importance of decarbonising regional aviation to ensure connectivity. The forum was an opportunity to share knowledge and discuss best practices to address the green transition and its challenges.

During the Forum, we had the pleasure of welcoming many stakeholders and policymakers as speakers to discuss the challenges and prospects for the sustainable development of regional aviation and to provide an opportunity to share the sector's best practices and innovations. With this aim, the forum held:

• An introductory session
• A first panel on social sustainability: Ensuring citizens’ freedom of movement
• A second panel on economic sustainability: Delivering cost-effective mobility
• A session on Net Zero as an inevitable path
• A third panel on SAF challenges and opportunities

The introductory session started with with António Guterres, Secretary-General of the United Nations who emphasised the necessity of aviation in our society for job creation, economic activity and interconnectivity but also the need to decarbonise. He was followed by Teresa Mafalda Gonçalves, CEO of SATA Azores Airlines. She welcomed the participants and reminded how such islands need aviation and decarbonisation to keep their tourism activities and protect their environment. Lastly, ERA Director General, Montserrat Barriga, set out how the Azores is perfect example of an outermost remote region and the challenges they face (for example, economic pressures, difficulties recruiting, infrastructure and facilities).
 
Afterwards, speakers of the first panel discussed ensuring citizens’ freedom of movement and the importance of accessible and affordable air travel for regional communities. While PSO contracts can be helpful in ensuring connectivity, they last only five years. These contracts need to be reviewed to guarantee connectivity as well as protect the environment – but this requires a lot of investment.
 
Discussing economic sustainability in the second session, panellists identified that regional specificities are often forgotten, yet they are the strength of regional aviation. There is a need to step away from big hubs and airlines and ensure the narrative includes the regions. Our sector needs to press governments to be able to deploy new technologies. This is an economic opportunity, but the question remains how to finance projects. There may be a need for financial institutions to step in.
 
For the inevitable path to net zero, we had two speakers: Claudia Coelho, Partner, Sustainability and Climate Change at PWC and Antoine TOULEMONT, European Affairs Advisor from AURA AERO. They both identified that the climate crisis represents a major threat and concern for companies. Though we are still far from our decarbonisation goals, we are approaching a milestone in 2030 with the early movers. There is a need to define the way forward and set common goals, with groups and platforms such as Destination 2050 and AZEA.
 
Last but not least, the topical subject of Sustainable Aviation Fuels (SAFs) was raised in the final panel. Energy companies and airlines acknowledged the technological challenges of producing SAF and the larger concern of feedstock. If we don’t come up with solutions, SAF will be limited and expensive, and other regions will end up producing SAF for the EU.

Overall the event was very informative and reminded how regional aviation is building a path to decarbonise the industry, and how working together and with the right support, the climate goals can be achieved.
 
Many thanks again to SATA who hosted this incredible and very instructive forum.

https://www.azoresairlines.pt/en/sustainable-regional-aviation-forum-2024 [1]