Tui Travel has claimed its airline fleet has a better environmental record than scheduled or no-frills airlines.

The company said it reduced its carbon footprint by 8% in 2007-08 mainly by using fuel more conservatively and consolidating its aviation operations, which account for 90% of its emissions.

Tui revealed the figure in its first annual sustainable development report, entitled Responsible Leadership.

The report lists measures the company has taken covering climate change, destinations, staff and customers, and sets targets for the next 12 months.

On climate change, it said its airlines emitted an average of 77.9g of carbon dioxide for each kilometre travelled by a customer in 2007-08.

It claimed that gave Tui a better environmental record than scheduled or no-frills airlines, which had comparable figures of 98-133g and 88-96g respectively.

Tui said this was the result of replacing older aircraft with newer, more fuel-efficient models.

It has set a target of further reducing aircraft emissions by 6% by 2013-14, and has set up programmes to reduce emissions from cruise ships, ground transport, flagship hotels and offices.

Tui now has 23 people working on sustainable development, including an airline environment manager, and a sustainable product manager to oversee its supply chain.

It is also drafting minimum sustainability criteria for all excursions.

Other measures highlighted in the report include the £1.7 million Tui raised for the World Care Fund, which pays for sustainable tourism projects, and the charitable programmes supported by 87% of Tui businesses.

Tui said tourism was responsible for only about 5% of global carbon dioxide emissions but accounted for 11% of the world’s GDP, and 50 of the world’s least developed countries relied on the industry for economic development.