Google and UK partners trial AI to reduce contrail formation over North Atlantic

Google has launched a project with the UK government and aviation and research partners aimed at reducing the climate impact of persistent contrails. The initiative, named Operation Blue Skies, will run for 30 months and focus on the Shanwick oceanic airspace over the North Atlantic.

The trial is split into two test phases of about four months each. During these periods, artificial intelligence will be used to identify areas where long-lasting contrails are likely to form. Flights will then be adjusted with slight route changes to avoid those zones when necessary.

According to the project description, roughly 10,000 flights cross the relevant airspace during each annual test window, though only a small proportion of them are expected to be rerouted as a result of the trial.

Partners named in the project include NATS, the UK's Met Office, and researchers from the University of Cambridge and Imperial College London. The effort is intended to test whether AI-guided rerouting can meaningfully cut the formation of contrails known to have an outsized warming effect compared with their short visual presence in the sky.

No results have yet been published, as the trial is only beginning. Further details on findings are expected once the test phases are completed.