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Climate scientists say the rise in private jet flights caused the industry’s annual carbon emissions to increase by 46% from 2019 to 2023.
New research published in journal Communication Earth and Environmentanalyzed the habits of 18,655,789 commercial flights over four years to understand the role of commercial aviation in climate change.
It found that leisure travel to holiday destinations and major international sporting events were responsible for the surge in private flights.
Professor Stefan Gosling of Sweden’s Linnaeus University, who led the study, said many commercial travelers were now “using these aircraft as taxis”.
Travel patterns show that 18.9% of commercial flights are short-haul flights, and 4.7% regularly take leisure trips less than 50 km (31 miles) in distance.
Professor Gosling said almost half of all commercial flights traveled less than 500 kilometers (310 miles).
Data shows that in 2023, civil aviation produced an estimated 15.6 million tons of carbon dioxide.
This represents about 1.8% of emissions from commercial air travel, with the most frequently operated premium class airlines accounting for about half of all emissions.
Professor Gosling said the rise in global emissions had been driven by the “wealthiest people” – around 256,000 people, representing 0.003 per cent of the adult population.
The researchers found that most commercial aircraft use is for leisure purposes.
Commercial flights to Ibiza and Nice, popular European holiday spots for “ultra-high-net-worth” travelers, peaked in the summer, with arrivals and departures concentrated on weekends.
According to the data, many commercial aircraft also took part in the same international events, with 595 aircraft also flying to the Cannes Film Festival at the World Economic Forum in Davos.
Similarly, 96 of the 404 aircraft at COP28 were also chartered for the Qatar 2022 World Cup.
Researchers have warned that people who regularly fly privately can emit almost 500 times more CO2 (2,400 tonnes) per year than the average person.
The total number of private jets has increased by 28.4% in four years, with 25,993 private jets in service as of the end of December 2023.
Some commercial aircraft, which consume up to 576 gallons of fuel per hour, emit more carbon dioxide per hour than the average human (4.5 tons) in a year, the study found.
Researchers predict that an additional 8,500 business jets will be delivered to the industry by 2033.
Professor Gosling said: “In 10 years people will wish they had done more to stop climate change.”
“We need to reduce certain activities and we need to start from the top to insist that everyone has a role to play in reducing emissions,” the report said. BBC News.
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