CO₂ emissions of trainer aircraft
Trainers are the aircraft pilots learn in, and the ones flight schools and clubs rent out. They fly more hours than any other group, so their fuel burn adds up fast for a school.
A trainer's fuel burn follows its engine power. The two-seaters with small engines burn the least, and the four-seaters such as the Cessna 172 and the Piper PA-28 burn more. Several two-seaters use a Rotax engine that often runs on mogas or UL91. We use the avgas factor for them, and mogas releases about 6% more CO₂ per liter.
Key facts
- Aircraft types
- 11
- Lowest CO₂ per hour
- 44 kg
- Tecnam P2008
- Highest CO₂ per hour
- 88 kg
- Cessna 172 Skyhawk
On average these aircraft emit 63 kg of CO₂ an hour, 0.7 times the 88 kg of a Cessna 172.
Trainers: CO₂ per hour
Sorted by CO₂ per hour, lowest first. Fuel flow is for the whole aircraft at about 75% power in cruise, and the cost uses the monthly plan rate.
| Aircraft | CO₂ per hour | Cost to offset an hour |
|---|---|---|
| Tecnam P20082 seats, 100 hp | 44 kg | $1.58 |
| Tecnam P2002 Sierra2 seats, 100 hp | 44 kg | $1.58 |
| Aquila A2112 seats, 100 hp | 48 kg | $1.73 |
| Cessna 150/1522 seats, 100–110 hp | 51 kg | $1.84 |
| Piper PA-38 Tomahawk2 seats, 112 hp | 54 kg | $1.94 |
| Robin DR400/1202+2 seats, 108–118 hp | 55 kg | $1.98 |
| Diamond DA20-C12 seats, 125 hp | 57 kg | $2.05 |
| Diamond DA404 seats, 180 hp | 83 kg | $2.99 |
| Piper PA-28 Cherokee4 seats, 140–180 hp | 87 kg | $3.13 |
| Piper PA-28R Arrow4 seats, 200 hp | 87 kg | $3.13 |
| Cessna 172 Skyhawk4 seats, 160–180 hp | 88 kg | $3.17 |
Trainers compared
CO₂ per flight hour on one scale with every aircraft we cover, so you can compare across groups.
How we calculate this
Each figure is fuel flow at about 75% power in cruise, leaned as the POH recommends, times the avgas factor of 8.31 kg of CO₂ per US gallon. Where a type's common variants differ, we use the one that burns more, so an offset never falls short.
GuideHow to calculate your flight's CO₂ emissionsThe formula, the emission factors for avgas and jet fuel, three ways to get your fuel figure, and a worked example for a year of flying a Cessna 172.
FuelAvgas 100LL and its CO₂ factorCO₂ per US gallon and per liter, a converter and the agencies' factors.
Other groups of aircraft
Aircraft categoryTouring aircraft8 types, 83 to 133 kg of CO₂ an hour.
Aircraft categoryHigh-performance aircraft9 types, 90 to 166 kg of CO₂ an hour.
Aircraft categoryMulti-engine aircraft7 types, 85 to 266 kg of CO₂ an hour.
Aircraft categoryBush and float planes6 types, 32 to 237 kg of CO₂ an hour.
Aircraft categoryVintage taildraggers8 types, 37 to 119 kg of CO₂ an hour.
Aircraft categoryAerobatic aircraft4 types, 56 to 151 kg of CO₂ an hour.
Aircraft categoryHelicopters4 types, 66 to 125 kg of CO₂ an hour.
CalculatorAll categoriesEvery group of aircraft side by side.
CalculatorAll aircraft by CO₂ per hourEvery aircraft we cover, on one scale.
Offset the CO₂ from every hour you fly
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