A new proposal is set to ban 'plane-hopping' to cover very short distances within Belgium, often with private jets.
Despite Belgium being a small country, around five planes take off every day from one area to land elsewhere in the country, often covering distances of less than 100 km. These flights are proportionally worse for the environment than long-haul flights, but have been given free rein up until now. Minister for Mobility, Georges Gilkinet, intends to put an end to this.
"These short-haul flights are an aberration both ecologically and economically. By tackling them on our territory, Belgium is leading the way," he said. Private jets are mainly responsible for these short-haul flights, and their share is increasing: in 2022, they accounted for 71% of flights with Belgian borders, up from 55% in 2019.
Gilkinet will present a draft Royal Decree on Friday to call for a total ban on these so-called 'hop-on hop-off' flights to Belgium's three regions.
Cut-throat solution?
Gilkinet mainly pointed to the urgency of climate change in his proposal, stressing that immediate action is needed.
"The scientists at the IPCC are clear: every tenth of a degree of global warming avoided matters and will enable us to prevent human tragedies and enormous economic costs. Our climate objectives (-55% carbon emissions by 2030, carbon neutrality by 2050) require the business world to change course, particularly in terms of transport," he said.
Short-distance flights are more carbon-intensive than other flights as take-off and landing are the most energy-intensive and polluting stages, meaning the shorter the flight, the higher the carbon footprint per kilometre.
The draft decree does however provide exceptions for emergencies such as disasters, rescue operations, police or military missions, research missions, surveillance missions, maintenance, training, and reasons related to weather conditions or other exceptional circumstances.
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While the proposal was welcomed by many, sceptics have argued that the draft decree does not go far enough to tackle the issue.
Transport policy expert at Bond Beter Leefmilieu, Naomi Cambien, argued that "long-haul flights have the biggest climate impact: 6% accounts for half of all aircraft emissions" and asked whether the government would also move towards fair pricing of aviation through an increase in flight tax.
Sander Vandecapelle, chair for left-wing PVDA in Flemish Brabant, maintained that, if Gilkinet really wanted to find a solution to short-haul flights, he would provide affordable high-speed trains from Zaventem to Amsterdam, Paris, Frankfurt and London. "All major airports have HST connectivity. Why not Zaventem?"
Leading the way
In May this year, France banned short-haul domestic flights, marking an essential step in reducing greenhouse gas emissions. However, environmental activists argued that the measure was "useless" as it only bans flights from the Paris Orly Airport to Nantes, Bordeaux and Lyon, and doesn't prevent these routes from being re-introduced from the Charles de Gaulle Airport.
Gilkinet hopes a national decision made within Belgium will pave the way for the rest of Europe. "A flight from Lille to Ostend or from Liège to Maastricht makes no more sense than a flight from Brussels to Antwerp. We must take action together," he said.
He stressed that the Belgian presidency of the Council of the European Union next year would be a good time to "shift things up a gear" with other Member States and call on the European Commission to implement change.
