Industry has "good track record" - Bisignani
Governments must deliver a global approach to cutting aviation's carbon emissions at Kyoto 2, the International Air Transport association (IATA) said.
Giovanni Bisignani, its president and ceo, said the industry had a "good track record and ambitious targets" for environmental performance.
But it needed governments to take a global approach, he said in a statement to the World Business Summit on Climate Change in Copenhagen.
Mr Bisignani said CO2 emissions from aviation should be logged globally by International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) and all airlines should have access to properly regulated carbon markets.
He said the industry had three "ambitious" targets: a 25% improvement in fuel efficiency by 2012, a use of 10% alternative fuels by 2017 and 50% "absolute reduction" in emissions by 2050.
Mr Bisignani said that aviation's emissions would fall by 8% this year, although mostly from the recession and drop in demand for flying.
On biofuels, a possible alternative fuel, he said that the industry had made "exciting" progress in the last three years when nobody thought they could replace fossil fuels.
He added: "These have the potential to reduce our carbon footprint by up to 80%."
"Working with governments, a united industry - airlines, airports, manufacturer and air navigation service provider - made air transport the safest way to travel.
"By working together with a coordinated global approach we can make aviation the first global industry to achieve carbon-neutral growth and a model for others to follow," Mr Bisignani said.
*Kyoto2 is a framework for a new climate agreement under the Climate Convention intended to replace the Kyoto Protocol, signed in 1997 and due to expire in 2012.
www.iata.org [1] www.kyoto2.org [2]