Climate Policy Engagement Analysis
Climate Policy Engagement Overview: In 2023-25, Airbus exhibits both positive and negative strategic engagement with science-aligned climate policy. Airbus supports top-line EU climate targets and policies promoting sustainable aviation fuels (SAFs) but advocated for a weaker non-CO2 Monitoring, Reporting and Verification Scheme and weaker sustainability criteria for SAFs in the US.
Top-line Messaging on Climate Policy: On its corporate website accessed in June 2025, Airbus appears to support a long-term aspirational goal (LTAG) through ICAO of net-zero CO2 emissions from international aviation by 2050 and the Paris Agreement. In a January 2024 joint statement, Airbus supported the EU’s 2050 net-zero emissions goal and European and global climate policy for aviation while opposing additional national policies. However, the CEO of Airbus, Guillaume Faury, appeared to suggest that an IPCC timeline for emissions reductions is unlikely in a March 2025 Bloomberg interview.
Engagement with Climate-Related Regulations: In a January 2025 meeting with the cabinet of the European Commissioner for Climate, Airbus advocated for the delay of the non-CO2 Monitoring Reporting and Verification (MRV) scheme and appeared to oppose the extension of the EUETS to all or departing international flights. It also appeared to advocate to weaken the non-CO2 MRV in two other January 2025 meetings with EU policymakers, by advocating for a 2026 review of the non-CO2 MRV scheme before its extension to extra-EEA flights. More positively, the company supported the removal of free emissions allowances and called for the ‘tightening of the ETS ceiling from 2024’ in a January 2024 joint statement.
Airbus engaged with EU policymakers in January and April 2025 on the global CORSIA offsetting scheme for international aviation, its position remains unclear. Additionally, Airbus signed a joint letter in January 2024, which stated support for a ‘strengthened’ Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation (CORSIA).
Airbus supported policies incentivizing production and uptake of SAF, including in the EU and US, in its 2023 Annual Report published in March 2024. In a January 2024 joint statement, Airbus supported an EU sustainable aviation fuels (SAF) mandate for intra-EU and long-haul flights and national policy to further promote SAF production and uptake. A November 2023 report commissioned by Airbus also supported the introduction of an incrementally increasing SAF mandate in Australia. Additionally, it supported the introduction of a SAF mandate in Australia in both July and August 2024 consultation responses. It also supported the introduction of a Low Carbon Fuel Standard in Australia if no mandate is introduced in the same July 2024 consultation response.
A June 2023 joint statement, accessed via freedom of information request, supported the US SAF blenders tax credit and the EU SAF mandate.
Regarding SAF sustainability criteria, Airbus supported globally and regionally recognized sustainability criteria for SAFs in its 2024 Annual Report, released in March 2025. However, Airbus supported the Farm to Fly act, a US measure that promotes aviation fuel produced from agricultural crops, in an April 2024 joint letter, without specifying the need for stringent sustainability criteria to protect land-based carbon stores. It also opposed a cap on Hydrotreated Esters and Fatty Acids (HEFA) fuels in the UK in a June 2023 Consultation Response.
In its 2023 Annual Report, published in March 2024, Airbus supported a global 2030 5% carbon intensity reduction target using SAFs.
Positioning on Energy Transition: In a June 2025 joint letter, Airbus supported increased investment and support for e-SAF including under the Sustainable Investment Transport Plan. It also supported increased use of bio-based SAF in aviation in the short-term with clear support for a switch to hydrogen and hybrid-electric in the medium to long-term in a March 2025 report. However, in a January 2024 joint statement, Airbus appeared unsupportive of increases in national air passenger duty taxes, while calling for the introduction of a global kerosene tax for all flights. The statement also appeared to support the development of infrastructure and policies to enable electric and hydrogen-powered aircraft. The CEO of Airbus, Guillaume Faury, was also generally unsupportive of aviation taxes and opposed the French ban on short-haul aviation in a March 2025 article.
Industry Association Governance: Airbus has not provided a disclosure of its trade association memberships nor a review of its alignment with its industry associations. The CEO of Airbus is on the board of Aerospace and Defence Industries Association of Europe (ASD) and senior executives are chairs of different committees at Aerospace Industries Associations (ICCAIA). Airbus is a member of Fuel Cell and Hydrogen Energy Association (FCHEA), the European Business Aviation Association, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) and the Spanish Confederation of Business Organizations (CEOE), Hydrogen Council which are strategically and negatively engaged with climate policy. Airbus is also a member of Airlines for Europe, Aerospace Industries Association and Hydrogen Europe, all of which have both positive and negative engagement on climate policy.
A detailed assessment of the company's corporate review on climate policy engagement can be found on InfluenceMap's CA100+ Investor Hub here.
InfluenceMap collects and assesses evidence of corporate climate policy engagement on a weekly basis, depending on the availability of information from each specific data source (for more information see our methodology). While this analysis flows through to the company’s scores each week, the summary above is updated periodically. This summary was last updated in Q3 2025.