How Much Can Carbon Taxes Contribute to Aviation Decarbonization by 2050

Aviation emissions from 2016 to 2050 could consume between 12% and 27% of the remaining carbon budget to keep global temperature rise below 1.5 °C above preindustrial levels. Consequently, aviation is being challenged to immediately start to reduce its in-sector emissions, then sharply reduce its CO2 emissions and fully decarbonize toward the second half of this century. Among the analyses carried out within the Horizon 2020 project PARE—Perspectives for Aeronautical Research in Europe, this paper tackles the potential role of climate change levy schemes in achieving the ambitious objective of aviation decarbonization by the year 2050.