China's Xiamen Airlines vows to contribute to UN Sustainable Development Goals

Xiamen Airlines (XiamenAir) will continue to support implementing the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), said XiamenAir Chairman Zhao Dong here on Monday.

Addressing an expo of the Airline Passenger Experience Association (APEX) held in Los Angeles, Zhao said XiamenAir had signed a cooperation agreement with the United Nations (UN) at its headquarters in New York in February 2017, becoming the first airline in the world to support the UN SDGs.

"This is our strong commitment to shoulder corporate social responsibility and take positive steps to put sustainability into practice," he said.

Since then, XiamenAir had adopted various measures to promote sustainable development, including curbing carbon emissions, providing bamboo pulp tissues and cups for passengers, introducing digital reading into cabins instead of paper books, and establishing a whole-process self-service system at airports consisting of self-check-in, self-baggage drop, face recognition self-boarding and other electronic service, according to Zhao.

XiamenAir has introduced a "United Dream" aircraft, the world's first such aircraft with UN SDGs markings, and organized themed flights during which SDGs-related videos were played and related activities were held, he said.

Over the past five years, the fuel consumption of XiamenAir per ton-kilometer has dropped by 14.8 percent, better than global average level of fuel efficiency improvement, achieving its commitment of annual emission reduction of 300,000 tons to the United Nations, Zhao said.

"Sustainable development is a golden key that will benefit humankind and future generations," Zhao said, adding XiamenAir will continue to introduce the SDGs to the world, and promote sustainable development of the aviation industry.

The APEX EXPO 2019, held from Monday to Thursday, is the industry's largest customer and passenger experience event for experts and decision-makers committed to elevating the level of the worldwide airline passenger experience.

It has attracted more than 3,000 industry professionals from around the globe, including representatives from over 100 airlines, systems manufacturers and industry suppliers.