private jets

Activists block private jet terminals around the world to protest ‘super rich mega polluters’

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Activists and scientists got on the runway to protest private jets at Malpensa Private Airport in Italy.   –  Copyright  Stay Grounded Network

https://www.euronews.com/green/2023/02/14/activists-block-private-jet-terminals-around-the-world-to-protest-super-rich-mega-polluter

Climate scientists have blocked private jet terminals around the world today in protest of ‘luxury emissions’.

London Luton Airport, Schiphol Airport in Amsterdam and Bromma Airport in Stockholm are among those being disrupted by activists from Scientist Rebellion, Extinction Rebellion (XR) and Stay Grounded.

It follows actions against private jets in Brussels and Seville yesterday, and one in Los Angeles on 11 February, with more protests expected in the coming months.

“It is time to ban private jets and tax frequent flyers to the ground”, says NASA climate scientist Dr Peter Kalmus from Scientist Rebellion.

“We cannot allow the rich to sacrifice our present and future in the pursuit of their luxury lifestyles.”

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https://www.euronews.com/green/2023/02/14/activists-block-private-jet-terminals-around-the-world-to-protest-super-rich-mega-polluter

Continue ReadingActivists block private jet terminals around the world to protest ‘super rich mega polluters’

LOVE IN ACTION: Extinction Rebellion blockades Luton Airport private jet terminals in Valentine’s Day protest

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Extinction Rebellion protest private jets at Luton airport. Image: Extinction Rebellion

Extinction Rebellion and affiliated groups blockaded Luton Airport’s Harrods Aviation and Signature private jet terminals this morning to demand the government take urgent action to ban private jets, tax frequent flyers and make wealthy polluters pay. 

Extinction Rebellion protest private jets at Luton airport. Image: Extinction Rebellion

The protest is part of a global co-ordinated action launched last week by climate activists across 11 countries, which is targeting multiple sites in Europe, Australia, New Zealand, and the US.

Groups chose to take action today due to the rise in the use of private jet flights for supposedly romantic Valentine’s Day dates, and to invite anyone watching to go to Parliament from April 21st to be part of 100,000 people calling for a citizen-led transition away from fossil fuels.

Today’s protest is part of the ongoing “Make Them Pay” campaign by Scientist Rebellion, Extinction Rebellion (XR), and Stay Grounded which has three key demands: ban private jets, tax frequent flyers and make polluters pay.

Extinction Rebellion: The Big One

Continue ReadingLOVE IN ACTION: Extinction Rebellion blockades Luton Airport private jet terminals in Valentine’s Day protest

Flying shame: the scandalous rise of private jets

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https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/jan/26/flying-shame-the-scandalous-rise-of-private-jets

It was a Labour spokesperson who said the prime minister was behaving “like an A-list celeb”, after Rishi Sunak made his third trip by private jet in 10 days. Last week, he flew from London to Blackpool in a 14-seat RAF jet – a 230-mile journey that would have taken about three hours by train. The week before, he did the same to Leeds, which he could have done in two and a half hours by train, but which wouldn’t have looked nearly so glamorous – to go by the ludicrous photograph of him looking important and being saluted as he boarded the aircraft.

Private planes are up to 14 times more polluting, per passenger, than commercial planes and 50 times more polluting than trains, according to a report by Transport & Environment, a European clean transport campaign organisation. “It goes against the fact that the government has committed to net zero by 2050,” says Alice Ridley, a spokesperson for the Campaign for Better Transport. “They have said they want to see more journeys by public transport, walking and cycling. Taking a private jet is extremely damaging for the environment, especially when there are other alternatives that would be far less polluting and would also be cheaper.”

Private planes carry far fewer passengers, while about 40% of flights are empty, simply getting the aircraft to the right location. Flying short distances also means planes are less fuel-efficient.

“A private jet is the most polluting form of transport you can take,” says Matt Finch, the UK policy manager for Transport & Environment. “The average private jet emits two tonnes of carbon an hour. The average European is responsible for [emitting] eight tonnes of carbon a year. You fly to the south of France and back, that’s half a year in one trip.”

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CE Delft – CO2 emissions from private flights to the World Economic Forum

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https://www.greenpeace.org/international/ce-delft_co2-emissions-from-private-flights-to-the-world-economic-forum/

CE Delft – CO2 emissions from private flights to the World Economic Forum

Summary of report

New analysis commissioned by Greenpeace International shows that 1,040 private jets flew in and out of airports serving the Swiss mountain resort of Davos during the week of the 2022 World Economic Forum (WEF), causing CO2 emissions from private jets four times greater than an average week.

The research, conducted by Dutch environmental consultancy CE Delft, found that the number of private jet flights to and from airports serving Davos doubled during the 2022 World Economic Forum meeting compared to average weeks, causing CO2 emissions equivalent to about 350,000 average cars in the same time period.[1] The researchers attribute about every second flight to the meeting itself.

Of all these flights, 53% were short-haul flights below 750 km that could have easily been train or car trips, with 38% flying ultra-short distances of under 500 km. The shortest flight recorded was only 21 km. According to the analysis, countries with the highest number of arrivals and departures out of Davos airports included Germany, France and Italy.

The issue of private jets garnered global public attention last year after several public figures faced criticism for taking ultra-short trips by private jet. The analysis released by Greenpeace International comes days before political and business leaders head into Davos to attend the 2023 World Economic Forum, with its self-proclaimed goal of wanting to tackle climate change and other “ongoing crises” calling for “bold collective action”.

Private jets are not regulated in the EU, even though they are the most polluting mode of transportation on the planet per passenger kilometre.[2] For the first time, in 2022, several EU countries spearheaded by France have started to push for an EU-wide regulation of private jet emissions. Greenpeace is calling on a ban on private jets and short-haul flights with train alternatives in the EU.

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The Shutdown of “Luxury Emissions” Should Be at the Center of Climate Revolt

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https://theintercept.com/2022/12/13/climate-protest-private-jets-schiphol-airport/

SEVEN HUNDRED SELF-DESCRIBED “climate rebels” breached the chain-link fence surrounding Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport, the world’s third-busiest hub for international passenger traffic, on November 5. With bolt cutters they opened holes in the fence and poured in, some of them on bicycles, and raced across the tarmac. Others laid ladders against the 9-foot-high fence and topped it on foot.

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“The superrich have got used to polluting as they please with a total disregard for people and planet, and private jets are the pinnacle of these luxury emissions that we simply cannot afford,” Jonathan Leggett, one of the activists, told us. “Our action brought them back to earth. We wanted to show the extremeness and injustice related to this manner of transport.”

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In the Netherlands, 8 percent of the population takes 40 percent of flights. Worldwide, the difference is even more stark: One percent of the population is responsible for 50 percent of pollution due to aviation, making air travel a textbook example of how pollution by the rich leads to consequences and injustices for those who have not caused the climate crisis.

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https://theintercept.com/2022/12/13/climate-protest-private-jets-schiphol-airport/

Continue ReadingThe Shutdown of “Luxury Emissions” Should Be at the Center of Climate Revolt