ANY ATHLETE AT the Brisbane Olympics in 2032 who sleeps through their alarm and realises with growing panic they’ve only minutes to navigate the city’s rush hour to get to their event may not be in quite as much strife as they fear.
Just a few moments away from the Olympic Village there could well be a helipad-like area where a small electric aircraft will be waiting to rush the athletes to the track in time for the starter’s gun. And it won’t have a pilot.
Four-seater driverless air taxis will take off and land vertically and are the brainchild of the powerful South East Queensland Council of Mayors, which is already negotiating the purchase of the taxis from a US manufacturer.
By then, the Northern Territory Air Services will be ferrying tourists between Darwin and Uluru using 20 battery-powered, nine-seater charter planes and Sydney Seaplanes passengers will be silently whisked over the shimmering harbour by the nation’s first fully electric fleet.
“We believe there will be a revolution in aviation, and we want to be at the forefront,” Sydney Seaplanes CEO Aaron Shaw declares on the company’s website.
Some 15 years after the first Tesla reached these shores, airlines are finally waking up to the need to usher in a new era of environmentally friendly travel, with biofuels, energy-efficient planes, huge carbon-offsetting projects, electrification and even the tantalising prospect of hydrogen engines.
All the major carriers are spruiking their existing green credentials and making ever more ambitious commitments to strive for eventual carbon neutrality.
But just how much actual progress has been made so far? And can air travel ever become a truly sustainable way to travel, even with all the shiny new innovations?
Denne historien er fra July - August 2023-utgaven av Australian Geographic Magazine.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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Denne historien er fra July - August 2023-utgaven av Australian Geographic Magazine.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
SULAWESI SENSATIONS
There are worlds within worlds and marvels untold waiting to be experienced on Indonesia's remote islands.
SEARCHING FOR AUSSIE DINOSAURS
Our understanding of where to find ancient life in Australia has been turned on its head by a new appreciation of the country's geology. Now the world is looking to our vast outback as the latest hotspot to locate fossils.
THE HARDEST NIGHT
The first Australian ascent of Mt Everest in 1984 is one of the great feats of mountaineering. Climbed by a small team semi-alpine style, with no bottled oxygen, via the Great (Norton) Couloir, it remains unrepeated 40 years later.
WEDGE-TAILED WONDER
The chance discovery of an eagle nest leads to an extended vigil observing normally hidden behaviours of one of nature's supreme winged marvels.
BURDENED BY BEAUTY
Northern Australia's Gouldian finch survives in huge numbers in cages around the world, but its wild population continues to struggle.
A TELESCOPE FOR A GOLDEN AGE
After a stellar 50 years as one of the country's major scientific assets, the AAT continues to play a major role in keeping Australian astronomy on the world stage.
COCKY WHISPERING AT COOMALLO CREEK
This patch of remnant bush on the edge of the West Australian wheatbelt is a place loved by one of Australia's rarest bird species and the man who has studied the site for more than 50 years.
A PIONEERING PAIR
Louisa Atkinson and her mother, Charlotte, were among Australia's earliest authors, and pioneers in women's rights.
THE LONGEST WALK
Lucy Barnard is walking from Argentina to Alaska -the length of the Americas - on an extraordinary journey of endurance and adventure.
SECLUDED, BUT NOT ALONE
In an era of heightened social isolation, where many of us lead lonely lives, Dangar Island offers the chance to be part of a supportive, connected community.
