A decrease in the number of passengers flying without baggage and its young fleet has led Tiger Airways Australia to claim that it is the ‘greenest’ airline in Australia.
Tiger says that changes to its baggage fee structure, which controversially sees the airline charge to use check-in counters for those travelling with hand luggage only and charging for checked baggage, have resulted in more passengers travelling with hand luggage only, saving on weight and fuel burn.
“We’re delighted that so many of our customers are choosing to ‘travel light’,” said managing director Crawford Rix. “With the majority of Tiger Airways’ customers saving money by choosing to travel without checked luggage, our fuel bills will be millions of dollars lower than they would have been if everyone checked in a bag.”
Rix also said that the airline’s policies were more effective at changing passenger behaviour than the imposition of a tax or emissions trading scheme. “Our incentive to customers for travelling light, is rewarding both the customer with lower fares and the environment with reduced fuel burn. Incentivising environmentally responsible behaviour in this way is far more effective than any emissions trading scheme or arbitrary tax.
Despite the claim, Tiger is currently the only major carrier in Australia not to offer a carbon offset program.
