629687 external_news 1575488859 1575488859 "We subsidize our fossil fuel economy," says Kim Cobb, professor of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences at Georgia Tech. "When we do that, we're keeping these prices artificially low." The Air Transport Action Group, a nonprofit that represents the global airline industry, predicts that net aviation carbon emissions in 2050 will be halved from 2005 amounts, through the eventual use of sustainable aviation fuels and small-scale use of electric aircraft. Between 2009 to 2020, the group also has a goal to continue to improve fuel efficiency by 1.5% per year. Still, Cobb says that airplanes are improving at a slower pace than other methods of transportation. "We have so many other technological fixes at our fingertips for the grid, electricity, and even cars and trucks," she says. "But this aviation piece will be a problem to stay."

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