Apart from the overwhelming carbon footprint of airplanes, there is also a mind-boggling amount of plastic waste that the aviation industry is sending to landfills.
In a move to make its flights more sustainable, the flag carrier airline of New Zealand has recently introduced a series of initiatives to reduce its single-use plastic by 55 million items in 2019. As part of the Australia-based Plastic Free July movement, the airline said that it has removed individual plastic water bottles from it’s Business Premier and Premium Economy cabins, as well as its offering on Tasman and Pacific Island services under five hours in duration.
By the end of October, Air New Zealand says it will have removed individual plastic sauce packets from its entire global network. Passengers will instead be served the sauce in reusable dishes thus preventing more than 200,000 plastic packets going to landfill each year.
What’s more, starting in October, passengers traveling with the airliner on both domestic and international flights will be able to enjoy their drinks in eco-friendly alternatives.