Letter: Jet aircraft pose the biggest threat to change in climate

After reading Star - Briefing, November 2, I thought it to be the right time to express my views on the report made by the inter-governmental panel on climate change, which said it could become unequivocal.

The report goes on to say it is likely 95 per cent of change since the 1950s was down for human activity. I believe the report, but I think it started even earlier, when Germany used jet aircraft in the Second World War.

My home is on the flight-path to mainly Manchester and northern airports and in between outgoing flights to my east and incoming to my west, and which are travelling north to south. One morning in just this area I counted 14 jet trails. The outgoing ones were much clearer because they were climbing at full throttle after take-off 40 miles away, and although the aircraft are just a dot, their trails tell you how many engines each have.

However, the trails of the incoming aircraft to my west when travelling overhead fade and stop because they have cut back the throttles to reduce speed to land. What I am pointing out is, on the whole flight (except while coming in to land) each individual aircraft uses huge amounts of fuel which cause their trails.

I am an aircraft spotter and build and fly models, and believe the jet engine to be the largest polluter on the planet and the trails they leave can be seen clearly until they mingle above the cloud base and eventually, I presume, into the ozone.

I am not an astronomer but believe this is the reason for climate change causing constant wind, mist, floods and extreme hot and cold weather.

History tells us it has changed and the climate is now very unpredictable. Maybe the jets contribution should be investigated more closely because it is something used vastly in the change of climate and I think it should be sooner rather than later, or it will become like the IPCC panel suggest unequivocal.

M Davies, Powys