Do planes use more fuel than ships?

The aviation industry represents 7.8% of final oil consumption worldwide, while maritime shipping accounts for 6.7%. Consumption by the aviation industry is growing the most rapidly – in fact, up until the early 1980s, it was responsible for less energy use than shipping.



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Bicycle. A standard lightweight, moderate-speed bicycle is one of the most energy-efficient forms of transport. Compared with walking, a 64 kg (140 lb) cyclist riding at 16 km/h (10 mph) requires about half the food energy per unit distance: 27 kcal/km, 3.1 kW·h (11 MJ) per 100 km, or 43 kcal/mi.

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Flights emit 500 grams of carbon dioxide/metric tons of cargo per kilometer of transportation. However, ships emit only between 10 to 40 grams of carbon dioxide per kilometer. The carbon footprint of airplanes is 20 to 30 times more than ships.

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Flights emit 500 grams of carbon dioxide/metric tons of cargo per kilometer of transportation. However, ships emit only between 10 to 40 grams of carbon dioxide per kilometer. The carbon footprint of airplanes is 20 to 30 times more than ships.

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Airlines find that fuel dumping can actually be cheaper than not dumping in certain circumstances. But it's not something pilots do on a routine basis. We spoke with Alison Duquette, spokesperson for the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), who assured us that it doesn't happen very often.

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On many larger commercial airplanes, a special nozzle is fitted to the wing. If a pilot deems it necessary, the system pumps fuel out of the nozzle into the atmosphere quickly – we're talking about a few tons per minute in most cases. It may look dramatic, but it's not a dangerous procedure.

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The cost of fueling your private jet can vary significantly. For example, on May 11, 2022, the IATA per gallon price was $4.82 in North America, $4.01 in Europe, and $3.55 in Asia. At Boston's Hanscomb Field Jet A was selling between $9.79 and $13.38 per gallon.

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Comparing the Carbon Footprints of Air and Sea Freight Airfreight generates 47 times more greenhouse gases than ocean shipping, for every ton-mile. While airplanes produce 500g of CO2 per metric ton of freight per kilometer of travel, cargo ships only produce 10-40 grams per kilometer.

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Simply add the strength of the headwind (30 mph) to your best glide speed (78 mph) and you've got the most efficient speed to fly—here, 108 mph. To determine an airplane's Carson speed, multiply its best glide speed by 1.32. This will get the best result in terms of true airspeed and fuel consumption.

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A June study from sustainable transport campaigner The European Federation for Transport and Environment found that 63 cruise ships owned by parent company Carnival Corporation emitted 43% more sulfur oxides, a group of harmful air pollutants, than all the 291 million cars in Europe in 2022.

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1. The Norwegian company Hurtigruten. Among the most environmentally sustainable ships are certainly the ships of the Norwegian cruise line Hurtigruten. The company has already eliminated heavy fuel oil (HFO) for more than a decade and uses alternative and greener fuels such as marine diesel oil and biofuels.

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