Private jets are increasingly replacing car travel for the super-rich

Major events cause private jet travel to surge

Major events such as the 2023 Super Bowl in Arizona, the 2023 Cannes Film Festival in France, the Conference of Parties (COP28) in Dubai, and the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar have been associated with significant peaks in private aviation emissions.

Analysis of flight patterns revealed that the 2022 FIFA World Cup attracted the most private flights of the events studied, with 1,846 private flights associated with the event, producing 14,700 metric tons of carbon. COP 28, a conference dedicated to combating climate change, attracted 291 private flights, producing 3,800 metric tons of carbon.

The researchers also found a seasonal trend that peaks in the summer and is concentrated on weekends in places such as Ibiza; Spain; and Nice, France, indicating private aviation used for leisure travel.

The number of private flights is growing

Overall emissions from private jets have increased over the past few years, with carbon dioxide emissions increasing by 46 percent between 2019 and 2023, according to the study. Some of this growth may be due to the COVID-19 pandemic, they say Stefan Goesslinggeographer at Linnaeus University in Sweden and author of the study.

Since commercial aviation was unavailable early in the COVID-19 pandemic, those who had private aviation available were likely using it as an alternative.