Why aren’t private planes banned?

This increase is also reflected in emissions, which doubled last year to reach 3.3 million tons of carbon dioxide, equivalent to that emitted annually by an average of 555,000 European Union residents. “On average and 14 times more than a commercial flight,” highlights Transport and Environment in a report published in 2022. For its part, the European Aviation Agency defends itself by arguing that these flights barely represent 0.04% of the total emissions released into the atmosphere. .

500 km on average

It represents only half a tenth of the CO2 of the sector’s total, but it is very expensive. “The average occupancy is usually four passengers, and many times, they are empty because they change locations,” deplores T&E. Among the most common flights is the Geneva (Switzerland) and Paris (France) route with more than 2,500 flights in 2022.

Transport and environmental researchers warn that this is for short and very short flights. The average journey length, according to European Business Association data, is 500 km, and in many cases cities have high-speed rail connectivity. This is the case of Geneva and Paris, but there are also other cities such as London and Paris, which are connected by rail within a few hours.

A habit that also occurs outside the Atlantic Ocean. Until Elon Musk arrived at the Twitter offices, now renamed X, the CelebrityJets account monitored billionaires’ travels and emissions. These include the 36 minutes it took Taylor Swift to travel through the air a distance of just over 500 kilometers separating Missouri from Nashville in the United States, or the 10 minutes used by boxer Floyd Mayweather in Las Vegas.

“It is time to put an end to private jets as the most unequal and polluting mode of transportation. A ban on private jets would be a good sign of justice for European citizens in the context of the current climate emergency,” they point out from Greenpeace Spain.

Spain, among the most common

To halt its advance, several European Union countries took action at the time to try to reduce, limit or completely ban this type of transport within the reach of a small number of people. This issue was on the table for discussion in Brussels on many occasions, but the European Commission, so far, has not taken the step on legislative matters.

One proposal was to impose a tax on the use of kerosene, as is already happening in some EU countries such as Italy. In the European Union, these types of flights are considered business and, as with commercial flights, are exempt from fuel taxes. In the Brussels plan, which has been named as fit for 55s, it looked like this tax if implemented “could raise €325 million per year if applied to all flights leaving the EU and UK”, T&E highlighted. “The revenues raised in this way could be used to accelerate the decarbonization of the aviation sector,” they add.

Exclusive trips available to a select few. Clients of this type of service are usually artists, footballers, politicians, kings and millionaires, and they have one thing in common: the Dassault Falcon 900EX, one of the most polluting turboprop aircraft, according to numerous scientific studies.

This plane is the tenth most registered unit in Europe, including the Kingdom of Spain, and the ship used by the government in its movements.

Thus, last year, a total of 700,510 private flights with specified origin and destination crossed European skies. This year, so far, the number has reached 513,972, and Paris is the preferred operating center for these aircraft. The French capital accounts for approximately 9% of private air traffic. In Spain, the Barcelona – Madrid route is the most used within Spain for private trips.

Palma de Mallorca and Ibiza are the most frequently used airports for these purposes and account for only 2% of private flights. However, Spain is one of 5 countries that offer business trips, according to the association that brings together this sector.

According to Greenpeace data, Spain recorded 45,633 flights by private planes at its airports. “This represents 8% of the total,” the Environment Agency warned in March. In terms of emissions, these take-offs, landings and flights accounted for a total of 243,900 tons of CO2, “equivalent to the average annual CO2 emissions of 162,567 cars,” Greenpeace condemns.

At the moment, the European Commission has not yet considered limiting or eliminating this mode of transport. At the request of Austria, France, Ireland and the Netherlands, Adina Valian, European Commissioner for Transport, responded in the summer: “We have no idea of ​​presenting anything on this issue. “We must allow the sector to develop its own standards for decarbonisation.”