Despite European climate protection efforts, private jet use continues to enjoy great popularity.
An analysis commissioned by the environmental organisation Greenpeace shows, the number of private jet flights in Europe increased by 64 per cent to a total of 572,806 in 2022; CO2 emissions from private jets more than doubled last year, exceeding the annual per capita CO2 emissions of 550,000 EU citizens.
The UK, Germany, France and Italy top the ranking of EU countries with the most private jet flights in 2022, with around half of all European private jet flights short or ultra-short journeys of less than 750 kilometres. For example, the Paris-London and the Rome-Milan routes are among the most used private jet routes in Europe. Greenpeace indicates that both those routes could be reached by train in about three hours.
The environmental organisation calls for an EU-wide ban on private jets but currently, such flights are not regulated in the EU. Per passenger, private jet flights would cause about five to 14 times more CO2 emissions than flights on an average passenger plane, and 50 times more than travelling by train, Greenpeace said. The European Union aims to emit 55 per cent fewer greenhouse gases by 2030 compared to 1990 levels, and wants to become climate neutral by 2050.
The research institute CE Delft analysed the number, development and climate impact of private jet flights in Europe (EU27, UK, Switzerland and Norway) for Greenpeace. One of the shortest routes flown from Austria is the Vienna-Bratislava route. This route can be covered by car in about one hour.
