Environment

Private jet carbon emissions jump 46%: study

Private jets, the preferred mode of transportation for the rich and famous, are the most energy-intensive form of flight, and the industry has long been a target of climate change protesters.

Carbon emissions from private jet travel will increase by 46% between 2019 and 2023 and will continue to rise unless the ultra-luxury industry is regulated, according to new research published Thursday.

Carbon dioxide emissions from civil aviation peaked during the European summer and around major global events such as the World Cup, Cannes Film Festival and the United Nations Climate Change Summit, the study found.

Private jets, the preferred mode of transportation for the rich and famous, are the most energy-intensive form of flight, and the industry has long been a target of climate change protesters.

Study authors from universities in Sweden, Denmark and Germany said carbon dioxide emissions from civil aviation will reach 15.6 million tonnes in 2023.

This represents less than 2% of civil aviation’s total carbon emissions.

However, private jets only carry 256,000 passengers (about 0.003 percent of the world’s adult population), which means they produce significantly more emissions per passenger than commercial travel.

Researchers evaluated flight tracker data from approximately 18.7 million individual charter aircraft flown between 2019 and 2023, representing the majority of the world’s commercial aviation.

They found that about half of these trips were less than 500 kilometers (310 miles), and many were empty en route to pickup or delivery.

They also noted that for very short trips, private jets “often appear to replace cars for time savings and convenience.”

“Analysis shows that individuals using PA (civil aviation) emit disproportionately more emissions than the average person,” said the study, published in the peer-reviewed journal Communications Earth & Environment. the study said.

Roughly two-thirds of the world’s private jets are based in the United States, and the average passenger has a personal net worth of $123 million.

2023 saw significant private jet traffic in connection with the Super Bowl, the World Economic Forum in Davos, and the COP28 climate change conference in Dubai.

Such gala events can attract “hundreds of individual flights” and generate “significant emissions,” the study said.

It also found that luxury coastal locations such as Ibiza and Nice saw a “clear seasonal trend with peaks in the summer”, with tourist arrivals concentrated on weekends.

The private jet industry is expected to grow, with the current fleet of 26,000 aircraft expected to increase by about a third by 2033.

The authors said this means that civil aviation will become an increasingly important source of carbon emissions, both in relative and absolute terms.

“The use of sustainable aviation fuel remains limited and the majority of commercial aircraft owners do not plan to use it in the near future, so there will be a need to regulate this sector.”

Commercial air travel “exemplifies the policy challenge of addressing the role of the wealthy, as policymakers are reluctant to focus on the wealthy and powerful,” the study added.

Further information: Stefan Gössling, Civil aviation increasingly contributes to climate change, Communications Earth & Environmental (2024). DOI: 10.1038/s43247-024-01775-z. www.nature.com/articles/s43247-024-01775-z

© 2024 AFP

Citation: Private Jet Carbon Emissions Soar 46%: Study (November 10, 2024), November 10, 2024, https://phys.org/news/2024-11-private-jet-carbon- Retrieved from emissions-soar.html

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