Private jet carbon emissions increased by close to 50 per cent in five years, research reveals

Emissions from private jets have increased by almost 50 per cent in just five years, according to the latest research.

An analysis published in Communications Earth and Environment revealed annual emissions of carbon dioxide from private jets had increased by 46 per cent between 2019 and 2023.

Private jets emit more carbon dioxide per passenger than commercial flights, but are used by approximately 0.003 per cent of the world’s population.

Stefan Gössling and colleagues from Sweden’s Linnaeus University found private flights cumulatively produced approximately 15.6 million tonnes of carbon dioxide in direct emissions in 2023 — an average of approximately 3.6 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions per flight.

That represented a 46 per cent increase in emissions from private aviation compared to 2019.

Major international events were associated with a large volume of private flights including the United Nations Climate Change Conference, which saw 644 private flights land for.

The results also revealed that some individuals who regularly use private aviation produced almost 500 times more carbon dioxide in a year than the average individual.