In common with many other forms of transport, aircraft engines emit polluting gases, contribute to global warming, and cause noise pollution. Airbus A380 An aircraft is any machine capable of atmospheric flight. ... Noise pollution is unwanted human-created sound that disrupts the environment. ...

Modern turbofan and turboprop engines are considerably more fuel-efficient and less polluting than earlier models. CFM56-3 turbofan, lower half, side view. ... A schematic diagram showing the operation of a turboprop engine. ...

However, despite this, the rapid growth of air travel due in large part to low cost carriers is contributing to an increase in total pollution attributable to aviation. In the context of global warming and peak oil, there is an ongoing debate about possible taxation of air travel and the inclusion of aviation in an emissions trading scheme, with a view to ensuring that the external costs of aviation are taken into account. This article refers to the tool of travel. ... Boeing 737-200 of low-cost Irish airline Ryanair A low-cost carrier (also known as a no-frills or discount carrier) is an airline that offers low fares but eliminates most traditional passenger services. ... First flight, December 17, 1903 Aviation or air transport refers to the activities surrounding human flight and the aircraft industry. ... Global mean surface temperatures 1856 to 2005 Mean surface temperature anomalies during the period 1995 to 2004 with respect to the average temperatures from 1940 to 1980 Global warming is the observed increase in the average temperature of the Earths atmosphere and oceans in recent decades. ... The Hubbert peak theory, also known as peak oil, is an influential theory concerning the long-term rate of conventional oil production and depletion. ... Emissions trading is an administrative approach used to reduce the cost of pollution control by providing economic incentives for achieving reductions in the emissions of pollutants. ... In economics external cost refers to a negative side-effect of an economic transaction, an act of exchange, consumption, or production. ...

See also

• Aviation noise
• Climate Change
• Natural environment
• Contrails in climate
• de:Flugzeug (ökologische Auswirkungen) - Extensive German Wikipedia article on aviation and its environmental effects

Aviation noise is a form of environmental noise. ... Variations in CO2, temperature and dust from the Vostok ice core over the last 400 000 years Climate change refers to the variation in the Earths global climate or regional climates over time. ... Devils Punchbowl Waterfall, New Zealand. ... Contrails are condensation trails (sometimes vapour trails): artificial cirrus clouds made by the exhaust of aircraft engines or wingtip vortices which precipitate a stream of tiny ice crystals in moist, frigid upper air. ...

External links

• Aviation Environment Federation
• AirportWatch
• Flight Pledge
• GreenSkies Alliance
• UK climate policy and aviation How does the government square growing aviation with their goal of emissions reductions?
• Observer article on people choosing not to fly