Emmissions of private jets rise rapidly
Emmissions of private jets rise rapidly
A global analysis of the use of private jets shows that the number of aircraft, flights and the distances covered have risen sharply in the past four years, which has tightened carbon dioxide emissions in this sector. Between 2019 and 2023, the number of private flights rose to more than four million a year, which increased emissions by 46%. The study published on November 7th in Communications Earth and Environment 1 Tons of CO2 produced and identified events around which they focused, including the Cop28 climate summit in Dubai Last year .
This work "is extremely important with regard to global global warming and the absolute inequalities we have worldwide," says Milan Klöwer, who examines the effects of aviation on global warming at the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. "While the private aviation obviously makes a small proportion of commercial aviation, it shows how disproportionate it burns the planet."
The costs of luxury
researchers have the Examination of air traffic on climate change examined. However, only a few studies focused on the global scale and the climatic costs of private jets, which represent one of the most energy -intensive possibilities of flying. "A large private aircraft can cause more emissions per hour than an average person in one year," says study mitar Stefan Gössling, who examines transport behavior and climate change at the University of Linnaeus in Sweden.
Gössling and his colleagues collected flight protocols from private aircraft from 2019 to 2023, which offer real -time location information for all flights. The flight time data was then "linked to the specific fuel consumption of the respective aircraft models to determine the emissions," he explains.
Your analysis showed that the number of private jets in the four years rose by 28.4% to almost 26,000 jets in 2023. The overall distance of the jets also increased. Although the total CO2 emissions rose from 10.7 to 15.6 million tons, the average emissions per kilometer fell, which could be due to more efficient jet systems (see "The jet set").
Almost 50% of the flights were shorter than 500 kilometers; Such distances, says Klöwer, could also have been covered by train or car. Many trips - and thus also emissions - focused on great worldwide events. For example, 172 of the 595 private planes that flew to the World Economic Forum 2023 were also seen at the Film Festival in Cannes this year. The COP28 were assigned 644 private flights that released an estimated 4,800 tons of CO2.
worrying trend
Although the scope of emissions is low compared to other sources, the study argues that the rate with which they rise is worrying. "I have already heard many colleagues say that 15.6 million tons in global comparison are nothing and that we can ignore the sector," says Gössling. "I think we should see it the other way round. If individuals are allowed to emit thousands of tons without consequences, why should others reduce their emissions?"
Klöwer agrees that the global increase in the use of private jets is “not sustainable”, and adds that stricter regulations would help reduce incentives for private flights. "Carbon is a cost factor and this cost factor should be internalized," says Gössling. "I think every country could raise taxes on every private jet that lands or stands out," says Klöwer, although he recognizes that such rules were "politically very, very difficult".
Klöwer advocates that future studies will also examine non-CO2 emissions through flying, such as methane or sulfur dioxide. He says that the calculation of these emissions would be challenging, but this research could help to convey a clearer picture of how individual jets contribute to global warming. "You could really assign and say this responsibility precisely ... 'This is the amount of warming for which you are personally responsible."
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Gössling, S., Humpe, A. & Leitão, J. C. Commun. Earth Environ. 5, 666 (2024).