Up In the Air

Sales of private jets are booming. The excessive climate-damaging lifestyles of celebrities, chief executives, oligarchs and billionaires (including pop stars) is emphasised by a report that the private jets of only 200 people spent the equivalent of 11 years in the air since 2022. These planes carried small numbers of passengers. Many were used (not always by the owners) for short, repeated trips. Emissions of 'greenhouse gases' are also maximal at take off and landing. Although the emissions generated by the 200 were huge, they represent only half a percent of the estimated 5.3m private flights in 2022 (https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/nov/21/the-jet-set-200-celebrities-aircraft-have-flown-for-combined-total-of-11-years-since-2022). French Economist, Thomas Piketty, says that private jets (and helicopters) should be banned ( https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/nov/22/ban-private-jets-to-address-climate-crisis-says-thomas-piketty). It's probably necessary if we are to get mass agreement about the lifestyle changes all must make, to counter catastrophic climate change.