The Gulf carrier was hauled up for "exaggerating the environmental benefits of flying with Etihad", the Advertising Standards Authority ruled on Wednesday (12 April).
The complaint revolved around two paid Facebook adverts seen in October 2022. One claimed the airline was "taking a louder, bolder approach to sustainable aviation" adding passengers would earn Etihad Guest Miles "every time they make a conscious choice for the planet".
The other one repeated the sustainable aviation claim while placing a focus on cutting back on single-use plastics. The ad also claimed Etihad was flying "the most efficient planes" and offering "flights with a smaller footprint".
The ASA said these claims, in particular, were at risk of exaggerating the environmental benefits of flying with Etihad.
In its response, Etihad said the stated "sustainable aviation" claims were not intended to demonstrate an "absolute solution" to the environmental impact of aviation, adding that in its view, the claims would be "widely understood as a long-term and multi-faceted process" contributing to the carrier’s 2050 net-zero carbon emissions ambition.
In its response, Etihad also detailed its efforts to operate more sustainably, and provided evidence for the "environmental airline of the year Etihad Airways 2022" captions in its ads.
However, the ASA found against Etihad, stating in its ruling the claims "exaggerated the impact that flying with Etihad would have on the environment", adding the ads had breached its code.
It further stated the CAP code, The UK Code of Non-broadcast Advertising and Direct and Promotional Marketing, required "absolute environmental claims" to be supported "by a high level of substantiation".
"The ASA acknowledged Etihad’s comments that the claim ’sustainable aviation’ would be understood, especially in the aviation industry, as a long-term, multi-faceted goal, which included their aspiration to reach ’net zero’ carbon emissions by 2050," said the ASA.
"However, we noted that the ads were aimed at the general public and not specifically at those in the airline industry and that neither ad mentioned Etihad’s desire to be ’net-zero’ by 2050 or positioned the claim ’sustainable aviation’ as a long-term aspiration."
