Hello and welcome to a special edition of Spectator Radio. I'm Kate Andrews. The UK's aviation industry has today pledged to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2050. It's a promise that has been met with skepticism by some campaigners.

So how does the industry think it can achieve this goal, while also matching Britain's post-Brexit ambitions on connectivity and trade?

One major reform could be the modernization of British airspace to make flight routes more fuel efficient.

It's a project that's been a long time coming. We don't always think of air space as a series of roads in the air,

but there is a complex infrastructure system right above our heads.

In fact, the UK's aviation network is the third largest in the world,

supporting hundreds of thousands of jobs in Britain,

and responsible for billions of pounds worth of trade with other countries.

But given its importance, you might be surprised to hear that the system we use today

is largely the same as when it was implemented, in the 1950s. Back then, the number of flights per year

in UK airspace was a mere 500,000, compared to over 2.5 million today. This archaic system is

feeling the strains of demand, leading to excessive carbon emissions, as well as delays in unnecessary noise pollution.

Plus, in the post-Brexit age, aviation will only become more important to our trade routes.

But critics argue that modernization might actually allow for more flights to take place, which could increase carbon emissions overall.

So, is modernization the right way forward?

I'm joined today by the

right Honorable Connor Burns MP, Minister of State for International Trade, Mark Swan, head of the

Airspace Change Organizing Group, and David Learmount, Aviation Journalist and Consulting Editor

at Flight International Magazine. This podcast is kindly sponsored by Our Future Skies, the Industry

Campaign Group for National Airspace Change. So David, I'll start with you. This podcast is kindly sponsored by Our Future Skies, the industry campaign group for national

airspace change.

So David, I'll start with you.

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