Environmental commitment

We at TAP are always working to become more efficient, offering our passengers a top-quality service and ensuring high-safety standards.
Promoting the company's sustainable growth is one of TAP's top commitments. The challenges facing an airline such as TAP go well beyond air transport activities, and include the facilities where the company operates and assures the maintenance of aircraft, engines, and many components.

The aviation industry, and TAP in particular, is facing major challenges due to current world events. Outlining a consolidated strategy that will allow the economic recovery of the company, the tourism industry and the country in general - while observing high-quality standards - will only be possible if we commit to minimizing the environmental impact of our operations.

IATA Environmental Certification Assessment

As part of the ongoing IATA Environmental Assessment (IEnvA), based on ISO 14001, TAP and Portugália are reinforcing their commitment by approving their environmental policy.

Committed to adopting procedures that continuously improve the environmental performance of their operations, TAP and Portugália are determined to optimise control of the environmental aspects that impact their daily activities. With a structured and planned approach, the aim is to implement a robust environmental management system, ensuring effectiveness in the application of good practices that minimise environmental impacts.

In this initial phase, certification will focus on activities that generate significant environmental impacts - such as waste management, emissions and consumption - covering both flight operations and corporate facilities. In this way, TAP and Portugália strengthen their commitment to reducing environmental impacts, contributing to a more efficient and responsible operation.

Energy efficiency and and CO₂ emissions

TAP is committed to ensuring compliance with the International Air Transport Association (IATA) resolution to achieve zero carbon emissions by 2050, which will only be possible with the involvement of all stakeholders.

The decarbonization of the aviation sector is a major challenge when it comes to sustainable mobility, as dependence on fossil fuels is still quite high. While technological solutions for the energy transition are not yet widely accessible, the Company continues to work on projects and initiatives aimed at reducing its environmental footprint.

The entry into operation of more efficient aircraft models, as part of the TAP fleet modernization program, has allowed for significant improvements in terms of efficient energy use and environmental protection. These new aircraft feature more efficient combustion engines, making it possible to reduce up to 20% in fuel consumption and carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions.

Improving efficient energy use and choosing Portuguese suppliers were the main criteria in the process of redesigning the cabin interiors of existing active aircraft. This project has made possible to increase the capacity of these airplanes by 12 seats, while reducing their weight by 800 kg.

At TAP, the operation's energy efficiency indicator is measured through fuel consumption per passenger, over a 100-kilometer route flown.
Since 2015, TAP has consistently improved this indicator, reflecting an investment in fleet modernization and increasingly optimized operations, except for 2020 and 2021, where the sector was faced with the biggest challenge of recent decades – the COVID-19 pandemic.

In 2023, there was an improvement in TAP's energy and environmental efficiency indicator by 9.1% when compared to the value achieved in 2019 (pre-COVID-19 pandemic).

Voluntary Carbon Offsetting Program

TAP’s carbon offset programme, available for over 10 years, is a voluntary mechanism that allows our customers to address the CO₂ emissions from their travels, by supporting certified projects that reduce or remove CO₂ emissions in an amount equivalent to the estimated carbon footprint of their trips.

While TAP acknowledges that offsetting emissions is only a small contribution to tackle climate change, this program provide our customers with options for supporting climate action around the world.

Regular Passengers and TAP Corporate | Emissions offsetting option available on flyTAP and TAP Corporate booking portals. In 2024, an exclusive platform will be made available to Corporate customers where it will be possible to monitor, measure and address CO₂ emissions through certified projects. 

For more information about the program, see the dedicated page.

TAP Air Cargo Customers | Emissions offsetting option is available on the dedicated platform. On this portal, TAP Air Cargo Customers, after registering on the platform, will be able to monitor, measure the CO₂ emissions associated with cargo transport and address them through certified projects.

Supported Certified Projects:

Waste

In 2020 TAP rolled out the RECICLA+ project to increase the amount of waste sent for recycling (paper/cardboard and plastic/metal), thus reducing the volume of unsorted waste. This project, will focus on three major types of waste: ordinary waste produced on the Campus, waste produced in the maintenance and engineering activity carried out on the Campus, and waste produced on board aircraft.

Disposable Plastic Reduction Program

TAP is focused on reducing the amount of single-use plastic on its aircraft and committed to finding reusable and more sustainable options on the market, so as to replace this material while maintaining high-safety standards throughout the company and following market trends in terms of materials.

As an example, TAP has already introduced wooden coffee stirrers to replace disposable plastic ones. On long-haul routes, plastic wrappers for headphones and comfort kits have been removed. Various materials used on our flights are already reusable, so they are collected by our service providers in Portugal.

Given the cross-cutting nature of this program, we have also made some changes at our headquarters, our TAP Campus, by replacing some disposable plastic items with more ecologically-friendly solutions. As an example, we no longer use plastic cups in bars and are now using reusable items for all desserts, salads and meals at the company's cafeteria.

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