4. RESEARCH RESULTS
4.4 Air France-KLM
Since the Air France-KLM group does not have common Instagram and Facebook accounts, the separate accounts of Air France and KLM were observed on these platforms, and the results combined. The group’s common Twitter account was observed in addition.
4.4.1 Air France-KLM Group on Twitter
At the time of the observation, the Air France-KLM account on Twitter had 1540 tweets and 9472 followers. (Air France-KLM Twitter, 2019) During the observed period, Air France-KLM had posted 100 tweets, out of which 25 were CER-related. This is equal to 25% of the tweets being CER-related. (Air France-KLM Twitter, 2019)
All screenshots: (Air France-KLM Twitter, 2019)
The group posted two tweets related to their commitment on reducing the environmental impact of their operations. The first tweet, in Picture 14., is a quote from Air France-KLM CEO, Benjamin Smith, who mentions that the group has accomplished concrete results with their environmental impact reduction plan, such as a 21% decrease in carbon emissions between 2011 and 2018.
Picture 14. Air France-KLM Twitter.
Keywords: sustainable development, environmental impact, carbon emissions The group also tweeted a link to their 2018 CSR-report, shown in Picture 15.
They portray themselves as the leaders bearing the responsibility of setting new, more sustainable standards in the aviation industry.
Picture 15. Air France-KLM Twitter.
Keywords: sustainable
Air France-KLM posted a series of tweets related to the 2019 Movin’ on Connect- summit in Montreal. This summit focused on the discussion around the sustainability challenges and possibilities of aviation in the future. Topics such as CO₂ emissions, eco-flying,
operation tools and research workshops were included in the schedule. The Air France-KLM group took active part in the summit, presenting their sustainability innovations and ideas and taking part in the discussions (Pictures 16. and 17.). (Air France-KLM Twitter, 2019)
Picture 16. Air France-KLM Twitter. Picture 17. Air France-KLM Twitter.
Keywords: sustainable, emissions
The group also posted several CER-related tweets in relation to the Paris Air Forum, including topics such as eco-piloting (Picture 18.), Elisabeth Borne’s approval of Air France’s ban on plastics on its flights (Picture 19.) and the aviation industry’s position as the first domain to take part in a global and systematic CO₂ reduction. (Air France-KLM Twitter, 2019)
Picture 18. Air France-KLM Twitter. Picture 19. Air France-KLM Twitter.
Keywords: eco-piloting Keywords: CO₂ emissions, plastics,
fuel-saving, eco-efficient, fuel consumption Air France-KLM posted five CER-related tweets regarding their fleet renewal of 60 new Airbus 220-300 aircraft. These tweets mention the new fleet’s reduced environmental impact in terms of a 20% reduction in CO₂ emissions and 50% noise reduction.
Examples in Pictures 20. and 21.
Picture 20. Air France-KLM Twitter.
Keywords: environmental footprint
Picture 21. Air France-KLM Twitter.
Keywords: CO₂ emissions
The group tweeted twice about their placing on the Dow Jones Sustainability Index for the 15th year in a row (Picture 22.) The Dow Jones Sustainability Index, in collaboration with SAM Corporate Sustainability Assessment, ranks companies in different sectors, in Air France-KLMS’ case the airline industry. The criteria used in the ranking includes economic, environmental and social factors. The Air France-KLM Group is ranked the highest in the airline industry in 2019, reaching a total combined score of 81. The industry average score was 40. The environmental criteria included assessment on climate strategy, operational eco-efficiency, where Air France-KLM ranked exceptionally well, and environmental policy and management systems. The group’s environmental score in the assessment was 92, whereas the industry average was 43. (SAM CSA, 2019)
Picture 22. Air France-KLM Twitter.
Keywords: sustainability, CSR Imagery: green, tree
4.4.2 Air France and KLM’s Facebook pages
At the time of observation, Air France had 7,397,496 likes and 7,330,241 followers on their Facebook page. During the observation period, Air France posted a total of 24 posts, out of which none were related to CER. Majority of the posts were travel tips and facts about Air France destination cities and countries. (Air France Facebook, 2019)
KLM’s Facebook page had 12,989,123 likes and 12,836,570 followers. (KLM Facebook, 2019) During the observation period, the company has posted a total of 50 posts, out of which six were CER-related, equaling to 12% of the posts being CER-related. (KLM Facebook, 2019) Considering the total amounts of posts that Air France and KLM posted, which equals 74, the combined percentage of CER-related Facebook posts from the group is 8.1%.
All screenshots: (KLM Facebook, 2019)
The first CER-related post is a link to an article “10 Things You Need to Know About Sustainable Aviation Fuel” from KLM’s blog (Picture 23.). This article is written by KLM’s sustainability manager Remona van der Zon, and it discusses KLM’s actions as the pioneer in the industry in terms of commitment to sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), the company’s annual purchase plan of 75,000 tons of sustainable aviation fuel, the plans for the future sustainable aviation fuel factory in Groningen, and several other facts regarding SAF. (Remona van der Zon, 2019)
Picture 23. KLM Facebook.
Keywords: sustainable aviation fuel Imagery: nature, factory planning
The second CER-related Facebook post from KLM is an 83 second video emphasizing the need of flying responsible (Picture 24.). It encourages customers and the aviation
industry to avoid unnecessary flying by taking the train or having online meetings instead of flying for work, packing lighter and compensating their CO₂ emissions by buying compensation packages.
Picture 24. KLM Facebook.
Keywords: sustainable, CO₂ emissions Imagery: Green, nature
The company also posted an 80-second introduction video of KLM’s new aircraft, Boeing 787-10. On the video, it is mentioned that this aircraft has lower noise disturbance levels and lower carbon emissions (Picture 25.).
Picture 25. KLM Facebook.
Keywords: noise disturbance, carbon emissions
Another CER-related post on the company’s Facebook page is a 67-second video interview with a KLM employee on sustainable aviation fuel, which emits up to 85% less CO₂ than regular aviation fuel, and how it can be made from organic residues such as used cooking oil. The video also explains that KLM is planning on building their own factory in Groningen, Netherlands, to produce their own sustainable aviation fuel as it is still very expensive to purchase (Picture 26.).
Picture 26. KLM Facebook.
Keywords: sustainable aviation fuel, CO₂, emission, fuel Imagery: green, leaf
4.4.3 Air France & KLM’s Instagram Accounts
At the time of the observation, Air France had 957 000 followers and 468 posts on their Instagram account. During the observation period from May 20th until September 20th, 2019, Air France had posted a total of 54 posts, out of which none were CER-related. Majority of the posts were inspirational pictures from Air France destinations. (Air France Instagram, 2019)
KLM had 1,3 million followers and 1825 posts at the time of the observation. During the observation period, the company had posted a total of 54 posts, out of which one was CER-related. This equals to 1.9% of the posts being CER-related. The combined sum of all Instagram posts posted by Air France and KLM is 108, which means the combined percentage of CER-related posts is 0.9%. In addition, KLM posted 2 highlighted Instagram stories related to CER, which, due to their length, are considered to add 4.5 to the total CER-related post count, making it 5.5. These CER-related posts are not calculated as part of the percentage of CER-related posts, as the total amount of
stories is not included in the total posts count. (KLM Instagram, 2019) The feed post in question, in Picture 27., encourages the viewer to have a look on KLM’s highlighted (meaning saved) stories, where they explain the sustainable rod-fishing that is being used in the Maldives to catch the tuna served on KLM’s flights. (KLM Instagram, 2019) All screenshots: (KLM Instagram, 2019)
Picture 27. KLM Instagram.
Keywords: sustainable
In the story highlight related to the tuna catching process, KLM explains how their sustainable tuna is caught, and what nutrients it includes. The story uses visual tools such as split screen pictures and videos (Picture 28.)
Picture 28. KLM Instagram.
Keywords: sustainable
Imagery: nature, ocean, schools of tuna, rod fishing
In addition to this, KLM has a saved story highlight with stories related exclusively to CER-issues. This highlight includes 36 different story slides. The theme of this highlight is KLM’s aim to be CO₂ neutral in its operations, and its position on the company’s Instagram account can be seen in Picture 29. below, circled in red:
Picture 29. KLM Instagram.
Keywords: CO₂ Imagery: green
This highlight was positioned as the first highlight on the highlight reel at the time of the observation, however the positioning of the highlights depends on the order in which they are uploaded or edited, with the most recent one the furthest to the left. The oldest slide in the highlight was from 52 weeks ago, whereas the newest one was from one day ago, from the date of the observation (October 12th, 2019). (KLM Instagram, 2019)
The “Mission: CO2ZERO”-highlight includes different slides grouped accordingly to different themes. The first theme is KLM’s five sustainability initiatives, and this includes slides on the transition to sustainable fuel, light weight cabin trays, sustainable food onboard, fleet renewal and waste recycling onboard. One initiative is presented per slide (Picture 30.). (KLM Instagram, 2019)
Picture 30. KLM Instagram.
Keywords: sustainability, sustainable fuel, recycling Imagery: recycle cans
In addition, the company includes four slides on their CO2ZERO-emission compensation project, where customers can donate money to a banana tree planting project in Panama in order to offset their CO₂ emissions (Picture 31.). The highlight also introduces some of the charities and organizations that the company supports by allowing its Flying Blue members to donate their miles to them, such as UNICEF, WWF and Red Cross. These organizations’ Instagram accounts are tagged in the respective story slides.
Picture 31. KLM Instagram.
Keywords: CO₂, green tree plantations
Finally, the group has a highlight series of videos with an employee interview on sustainable aviation fuel. This is the same video discussed earlier in the research results under KLM’s Facebook section.
5. ANALYSIS
Looking at the differences in company sizes and revenues between the three aviation entities, it becomes apparent that Finnair is considerably smaller than the two other studied entities. However, this brings an interesting element to the analysis as it can be observed whether the size of the company affects the outcomes of the study. It is worth noting that the two larger airline groups might have larger resources for CER actions and communication.
As the results indicate, all three aviation entities have similar CER target areas and actions, however they are grouped and categorized differently between the groups. The social media coverage given to CER-related matters differs significantly between the entities, both in amount and in style, indicating differences in the ways the companies prioritize the responsibility to share knowledge related to such issues.