Transport minister’s support for high-speed rail over planes riles the aviation industry

The aviation industry has demanded Transport Minister Catherine King show it some support after she suggested high-speed rail would help decarbonise Australia and get planes out of the sky.

Aircraft lined up at Sydney Airport, Australia’s busiest gateway.

Transport Minister Catherine King has ruffled feathers in the aviation sector by suggesting there was a need to get planes out of the sky to reduce carbon emissions.

Speaking on ABC radio in Newcastle, Ms King spruiked the benefits of high-speed rail as an alternative to air travel, particularly on the busy Sydney-Melbourne route.

“This is one of those projects where we’re very determined that it get done,” Ms King said of high-speed rail.

“We’ve actually got one of the busiest flight routes in the country, if not the world, between Melbourne and Sydney and if we’re going to get planes out of the sky and we’re going to decarbonise aviation, train travel is one of those ways that we’ve actually got to do it.”

The remarks raised eyebrows in the aviation industry still struggling to understand Ms King’s decision to refuse Qatar Airways an additional 21 flights a week into Australia.

Federal Transport Minister Catherine King. Picture: Dan Peled

Australian Airports Association chief executive James Goodwin said the comments appeared shortsighted given that it would take about four hours to travel on a high-speed train between Sydney and Melbourne.

“We were surprised to see that Minister King would suggest that taking planes out of the sky would be a decarbonising plan,” Mr Goodwin said.

“What we need to concentrate on is that air travel is as efficient and environmentally friendly as possible. That’s going to take a number of things, including the most efficient air traffic management system, sustainable aviation fuel for large aircraft, and electrification for smaller aircraft.”

He said high-speed rail had been talked about for decades and was still many years off becoming a reality.

If and when the infrastructure were established, a Fast Track Australia report showed the fastest travel time between Sydney and Melbourne would be four hours.

“We don’t know what sort of infrastructure will be needed, we don’t know what sort of trains are going to be used, how they’re going to be fuelled and what energy they’re going to be using,” Mr Goodwin said.

“All those things are yet to be determined, but what we do have right now is air travel and the important thing is to make sure Australians can get to where they need to go as easily and reliably as they can.”

Airlines have set a target of net zero carbon emissions by 2050 through initiatives such as sustainable aviation fuel, electrification, green hydrogen and offsets.

Mr Goodwin called for the minister to clarify her remarks, and show her support for the aviation industry.

“We have an aviation green paper coming out soon, which is a key initiative of the Labor government and Minister King herself,” he said.

“We’d like to see Minister King when she releases the paper come out with a very strong statement to support the aviation industry, and the people who work in it and those who rely on it.”

Others in the airline industry shared the view that taking aircraft out of the sky was not a practical way to go about reducing emissions.

“Aviation is a hard sector to abate emissions, but it’s essential that we do because air travel in a country the size of Australia is also essential,” a Qantas spokeswoman said.

“That’s why we are investing up to $400m in sustainability projects and technologies, and buying more fuel-efficient aircraft, which will help deliver the emissions reductions we need and protect the future of travel in the process.”

The minister’s office pointed to the paper and her establishment of a Jet Zero Council as evidence of her support for the aviation industry and its decarbonisation.

“Plane travel is the way Australians connect with countries and people overseas,” a spokeswoman for the minister said.

“Australia is one of the most aviation dependent nations and that is not going to change.”

Originally published as Transport minister’s support for high-speed rail over planes riles the aviation industry