A year that has been marked by the impact of climate change on the planet being more obvious than ever and airport chaos across Europe also saw the number of flights by private jets in the bloc increase.
Private jets are severely harmful to the planet. Although the absolute amount of fuel and CO2 emitted is lower than on a commercial jet because the vehicle is smaller, there are fewer people on board. The carbon footprint of these passengers will therefore be far higher.
Despite them being a massive hindrance to global efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, the number of flights by private jets has increased by almost a third in recent months compared to 2019 (before the pandemic), according to data from the European Business Aviation Association published by Bloomberg.
In July, air travel by private jets in Europe increased by 30% to nearly 179,000 flights. London sees the highest number of private jets flying to and from its airports — more than 12,000 in July — while Naples, Amsterdam and Berlin record the largest increases in the number of private traffic.
Popular destinations also include the French capital Paris and the holiday islands Ibiza (Spain) and Mykonos (Greece).
Avoiding chaos
These figures suggest that the bloc's wealthiest (mostly European CEOs) are increasingly flying privately to avoid the chaos at airports.
Strikes by cabin crew, pilots and ground staff have resulted in airports across the continent being in disarray, leaving travellers stranded for hours and thousands of flights being cancelled and delayed.
A large increase in the number of people travelling by plane as the Covid-19 restrictions in many European countries were largely lifted coincided with staff shortages as a result of the pandemic when airlines cut back on staff to save money.
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In the midst of a tight labour market, many airlines are now struggling to fill new positions, which are needed to meet the increase in demand from travellers. The failure to do so is resulting in the workload of existing staff members rising, which is why many have gone on strike in the summer.
In France and the United Kingdom, private jets have been in the sights of policymakers and the media in recent weeks, while in Belgium, Groen launched an appeal for a tax on private jets at the beginning of this month.
