Energy consumption, CO2, and equivalent CO2 : aircraft versus train

Abstract

Aircraft are far away from zero emission and have no chance to reach the environmental friendliness level of trains. Their burden to the environment is a factor between 2.8 and 49 higher than the environmental burden of trains per passenger and kilometer. It depends what metric is applied: energy consumption, CO2, or equivalent CO2. Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) makes the plane's absolute values as well as the comparison with trains rather worse than any better. This is caused by tremendous conversion losses and the fact that most likely (based on statistical projection) not all conventional power plants will be gone in 2050.