HAMBURG (dpa-AFX) - Despite still enormous problems of aviation on its way to climate neutrality, industry and politics show optimism. "Our big goal is clear: we want to become climate-neutral by 2045, while remaining a successful industrialized country with further growth opportunities," said German Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) at the National Aviation Conference in Hamburg on Monday. Aviation is responsible for just under three percent of global CO2 emissions, he said. "It is clear that this should become even less."

When it comes to climate-friendly technologies, he said, the aviation industry in Germany already leads the world. But the aviation industry will change quite fundamentally, he said. In the future, hydrogen propulsion will certainly be possible in series-produced aircraft. To this end, the German government wants to set the pace for the development of the necessary infrastructure. Scholz said he was convinced that Germany had a "very good future" as an aviation location.

Federal Transport Minister Volker Wissing (FDP) said that Germany's close links with the world were an economic necessity and a prerequisite for an export nation like Germany to be economically successful. However, he added, it was crucial that air traffic be climate-neutral. That, in turn, would have to happen internationally in close competition, he said. "We must not create regulations in Europe that lead to fewer flights here and more using fossil kerosene outside the European Union," Wissing said.

For German Economics Minister Robert Habeck (Greens), climate protection technologies are key to international aviation success. "Today, no aircraft in the world flies without parts from Germany." To make sure it stays that way, he said, the federal government is supporting the industry in technology development. In the direction of the environmental associations, Habeck said, "The idea that we protect the climate and have no aviation is unworldly. This is not going to happen."

Before the conference began, environmentalists had demonstrated in front of Lufthansa Technik's main entrance. Instead of more and more flights, they demanded a reduction in the number of scheduled takeoffs and landings at German airports by at least 20 percent by 2030. "The growth in air traffic is massively endangering Germany's climate goals," said Sabine Sommer, head of Hamburg's environmental organization BUND. Christoph Bals, political director of the development organization Germanwatch, was also a participant at the conference and called on the German government to reduce "the massively growing role of air traffic with additional measures."

The German Association Against Aircraft Noise is backing a reduction in takeoff and landing rights. "Despite all the technological measures envisaged, the pollution caused by air traffic is currently increasing again due to the massive increase in aircraft movements," said its president, Carl Ahlgrimm. It is therefore crucial to use all available legal means, he added.

On the other hand, Michael Schollhorn, president of the German Aerospace Industries Association, warned against bans. "The pure restriction route won't cut it." He also pointed out that the industry itself has long wanted climate neutrality in aviation. "In the meantime, this is no longer just intellectual realization, it is also heartfelt desire."

IG Metall executive Jürgen Kerner is also backing a different approach. Instead of wanting to ban business jets, for example, their owners should be obliged to use climate-neutral fuels. The same applies to air freight, he says. "From our point of view, these empty towers are necessary to generate social acceptance."

Lufthansa CEO Carsten Spohr, referring to difficult years in the Corona pandemic, said, "Aviation is back." Regarding Lufthansa, he said, "We're doing great." The German government had rescued the company with support measures during the pandemic. Spohr went on to say that when it came to climate protection, there should be no unilateral action in Europe; global solutions were needed. Synthetic fuels currently account for 0.2 percent of Lufthansa's fuel consumption. He also called for a reform of the air traffic tax./klm/DP/nas