Frankfurt — German airline Lufthansa is testing a new green ticket fare option on the Scandinavian market, the company announced in Frankfurt on Tuesday.
Along with the usual Light, Classic, and Flex fares, customers will be able to book a Green Fare as of Tuesday for European flights from Norway, Sweden, and Denmark.
The Green Fare allows customers to purchase full CO2 compensation of their flight, with 20% of it sourced through the production of sustainable aviation fuels (SAF) from food waste, and 80% through climate protection programs.
The Green Fare will be available for economy and business class flights.
The company said it is the first airline to offer this option to its customers.
Critics responded to the program that the CO2 compensation does not undo the CO2 emissions of a flight, and that such programs could legitimize environmentally harmful practices in the long term.
The demand for climate neutral travel options is on the rise, according to Lufthansa.
SAF is currently only available in limited amounts. The EU plans to make quotas of SAF a compulsory component of airplane fuel, to be mixed with kerosene.
Lufthansa has signed a memorandum of understanding with fuel company Shell, with the company announcing on Monday that "the parties intend to agree on a contract for a total supply volume of up to 1.8 million metric tons of SAF starting in 2024, over a term of seven years."
Outside of Scandinavia, Lufthansa continues to offer customers a chance to compensate the CO2 emissions of their flight at the end of the booking process.
Via online platform Compensaid, customers are given a choice paying for SAF, climate protection programs, or a mixture of the two at varying prices.
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