Earth Hour 2024: Athens Airport Switches Off the Lights

For the 13th year, Athens International Airport (AIA) joins WWF’s global initiative “Earth Hour” on Saturday, March 23.

The airport will switch off the lighting of its western runway system (03L/21R), interrupting its operation for one hour, between 20:30 – 21:30 (local time)*.

Aiming to contribute to public awareness regarding the issue of climate change, announcements in the airport’s terminal will be made, informing passengers and visitors about the WWF’s global mobilization and the active participation of Athens International Airport.

This year, the official Earth Hour video (below) will be played on displays in the main terminal to increase the awareness of both passengers and employees.

The airport company also encourages all its employees to participate from home, by dimming or shutting off their lights. Sofitel, IKEA, and other members of the airport community will be participating in the symbolic action to address the threat of climate change.

* It is noted that the closure of the western runway system will NOT impact Athens International Airport’s operations; closure will take place following special planning for the one-hour duration of the action. All flights will be serviced on the airport’s eastern runway according to schedule.

Athens Airport and Climate Change

AIA participates in a global industry initiative led by Airports Council International (ACI) Europe aimed at managing greenhouse gas emissions under the control of airport operators.

In 2023, ΑΙΑ met all the necessary requirements to upgrade to the final, most ambitious level of the Airport Carbon Accreditation Programme: Level 4+ Transition. This was accomplished by further strengthening cooperation with third parties in the airport community and their commitment toward emission reductions, as well as by calculating additional Scope 3 emissions from indirect sources.

As part of AIA’s commitment to net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2025, following the completion of the first phase of the 16MW solar park, plans are progressing to build the 35.5MW solar park within the airport grounds, which will include an 82MWh battery energy storage system.

Plans are also progressing to replace natural gas consumption with heat pumps as well as to phase out the entire AIA fleet (apart from heavy-duty vehicles) by replacing all company vehicles with electric ones while moving forward with planning the necessary charging infrastructure.