Sustainable Development In Aviation Industry And The Case Of Turkish Airlanes

3rd International Symposium on Sustainable Development, Sarajevo, Bosnia And Herzegovina, 31 May - 01 June 2012, pp.157-167

Within changing world, sustainable development globally has become an important strategic

goal for all sectors.

Sustainable development seeks to protect, develop and balance social, economic and

environmental goals and resources in order to secure comfort and welfare of present and

future generations. The significance level of these related goals and sources is very high.

Threats and hazards such as limited resources around the globe, overly population increase,

global warming, damaging of ozone layer, decreasing of live species and environmental

pollution dramatically reveal the importance of sustainable development.

United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and Kyoto Protocol

which was signed in 1997 came into force in 2005. In this context, aviation industry is a good

sample for sustainability. Fuels used in consist of non-renewable resources so contribute to

climate change negatively. But, at the same time, that industry makes very valuable and

unique contributions to the sustainable development aimed by global society. These

contributions are realized social, economical and environmental dimensions.

Aviation industry is the safest and most efficient type in public transportation. Over long

distances and beyond geographical barriers, no alternative one exist so. It offers affordable

transportation services to the nations, regions and individuals with wide transportation

network. Furthermore, by promoting cultural and social ties, it facilitates exchange of

educational experiences.

Economically, aviation industry encourages economic development by facilitating access of

regional and global markets, involving with these markets and increasing market share. At the

same time, aviation industry leading to the development of trade, travel and tourism sector

provides improving of income distribution by creating employment around the globe.

This industry pioneers to the electronic transportation. Highly savings got at ticketing and

other documentation transactions by adopting to the electronic system. Decrease in the level

of aircraft noise-footprint at a 20 db in recent years, an increase in fuel efficiency of 70

percent in last 40 years – today’s newest aircraft technology often matchs the energy

consumption of modern cars and in some cases (depending on speed and distance)-, coming

down Carbon emission ratios dramatically, alternative fuel systems as biofuels and less

service required space area compared to other transportation types can be taken as outstanding

environmental effects of this industry.

Turkish Airlines (THY) showed an outstanding performance both economically and socially

for the last years. Now, being a member of Star Alliance Group, it has a wide flight network

around the globe with generated fleet. Furthermore, the company works to make contributions

to the sustainable future