Last year, Eurocontrol—the European Organisation for the Safety of Air Navigation—recorded more than 94,000 business jet departures in Germany. That is the highest number ever recorded. Before the pandemic, in 2019, there were around 85,000 departures.

Süddeutsche Zeitung and NDR took a closer look at the figures:

• Only one in ten flights in 2022 covered more than 1,000 kilometres.
• For two out of three flights (60%), the departure and destination airports were less than 300 kilometres apart.
• Only around 15% of flights were operated for training purposes or medical reasons, such as transporting organs.
• One particularly popular route: Hamburg to Sylt.

This is where the issue becomes particularly concerning, as short-haul flights have an especially poor climate footprint. It is also fair to question whether every trip to the island was made strictly for business purposes.

Aircraft produce especially high CO₂ emissions during take-off. The shorter the distance flown afterwards, the greater the emissions per kilometre—and the worse the overall climate impact.

Of course, this trend is not limited to Germany. Worldwide, 5.5 million private jet flights were recorded last year—around 697,000 more than in 2019 (Source: WingX Advance).

Small and medium-sized businesses in Germany’s rural regions argue that without the ability to quickly take a private flight, their companies would no longer be represented “in the countryside.” Indeed, they ask: who has access to high-speed rail networks there? At present, rail services are also not seen as a reliable alternative due to frequent delays, and cars are regularly stuck in traffic.

In addition, some commercial airlines withdrew from regional routes during the pandemic. Against this backdrop, Andreas Mundsinger, Managing Director of the German Business Aviation Association (GBAA), hits a nerve when he stresses that many managers and employees do not use small aircraft for leisure. “We are concerned that we are being painted with the same brush,” he is quoted as saying in Handelsblatt.

However, when it comes to flights between Hamburg and Sylt, questions of necessity remain. The distance is about 180 kilometres as the crow flies. By road and rail, the route from Hamburg city centre to Westerland is only around 50 kilometres longer. By train, the journey from Hamburg-Altona takes about 2 hours and 59 minutes.

There is still “room for improvement” when it comes to reducing the climate impact—quite simply by staying on the ground. Other options would directly affect costs: discussions include special taxes intended to discourage usage, or mandatory purchase of emissions allowances. Policymakers are being called upon to act.