Disclaimer: This text reflects only the opinion of its author and does not in any way commit the official word of the French Air and Space Academy.
By Alain Joselzon, Full Member.
The following reflections were inspired by the recent international symposium organized by the French Air and Space Academy on March 11 and 12, 2021[1], in relation to various presentations and exchanges, in particular around the notions, applied to aviation, of carbon budget, of distance-time criteria for comparing emissions between modes of transport, of its nature as a means of transport considered insufficiently accessible by some and, more generally, concerning the role of aviation.
I was struck by the phrase “Travel: in our DNA”, which scrolled across the screen during video interludes: so simple, condensed and yet so rich in meaning.
When we go back in time to geological eras, living species began to develop, first in the marine environment, then amphibious, reptilian, and, probably descended from a branch of dinosaurs in the Jurassic, prehistoric birds flew away, long before the appearance of the first hominids. I will leave it to paleontologists, Darwinists and anthropologists to explain how the evolution of species gradually transformed the physical characteristics between the first fish, dinosaurs, prehistoric birds, to arrive at the higher mammals and humans of today, by very long and non-linear paths. The fact is that our DNA must keep some traces of distant ancestors who moved in the water, on land and in the air! Travelling is therefore literally part of our DNA….
[1] International Webinar: “Air Transport in Crisis and Climate Challenge – Towards New Paradigms”