Austrian Airlines has been found guilty of misleading advertising by the Regional Court (LG) Korneuburg for promoting flights as CO2-neutral. The court agreed with the Association for Consumer Information (VKI) that the airline’s claims were deceptive, as it is currently not technically possible to achieve 100% CO2-neutral flights using sustainable aviation fuel (SAF). Austrian Airlines had offered a sustainability option for an additional surcharge, claiming to calculate and offset the fuel consumption for future flights. The court ruled that the airline could have provided clearer information without misleading consumers, and the VKI criticized the hefty surcharge for an unattainable service.
Resource: https://vki.at/Presse/PA-AUA-Greenwashing-2023