Private jets are much smaller than regular passenger planes, so I’m assuming they weigh less. Shouldn’t an airplane that weights less burn less fuel, thus being better for the environment?
And why not just modify a passenger plane into a private one, since it’s better for the enviornment, while people still get to fly private?
​
In: 0
Because a regular jet plane flies 200 people from one city to another, while a private jet flies 1 person (or a small group) from one city to another. Which makes private jets grossly inefficient.
So, private jets are like speedy cars for the sky – they’re smaller and faster, which is cool, but it also makes them not-so-great for the environment.
See, while they’re lighter than big passenger planes, they still burn a whole bunch of fuel to go fast. Plus, they often fly at lower altitudes, which can actually release more harmful stuff into the air.
Now, about modifying passenger planes into private ones – sounds neat, right? But those fancy interiors for private jets mean more weight, which can cancel out the fuel efficiency gained from the plane’s design. So it’s like getting a turbo boost in your car but using it to carry around a bunch of heavy stuff.
They carry waaaaayyyyy less passengers, i think 10 – 20, whereas a passenger plane carries 100 – 300, the biggest ones probably even more. If you break it down to 1 passenger, the bigger one becomes more efficient. Additionally, plane engines produce most thrust with bypass-air, which is not burned. And a bigger engine has more bypass-air and becomes more efficient.
It’s the fact that it’s private. The planes can be smaller but it’s transporting one person. Check this article out https://www.forbes.com/sites/oliverwilliams1/2021/11/05/118-private-jets-take-leaders-to-cop26-climate-summit-burning-over-1000-tons-of-co2/amp/
It’s the same reason a bus is better for the environment than a car. One jet flying with a bunch of people pumps out less of the bad stuff than three jets with fewer people
It’s busses vs cars, in the sky.
Mass transport is always more economic compared to individual (walking aside)
The fact that you’re using boatloads of kerosene to ferry 5 people.
Yes, they’re rich enough they can pay for it. Doesn’t mean it’s not a waste. I can let my faucet run for 5 hours and pay the bill at the end of the month, doesn’t mean I’m not wasting water just because I can afford to. Both resources are finite, and in the case of fuel we’re talking about air pollution.
The same reason carpooling is encouraged. There are always empty seats in your car. On a typical day in a given road, half the cars are empty. Meaning that we could use half the amount of vehicles to transport the same amount of people.
The same way public transport buses are better for the environment even though they often use big heavy diesel engines. One big passenger plane can carry 100+ passengers as opposed to a private plane that can carry 5 people If every single person who buys a plane ticket got to travel in their own private plane, then earth would be pure exhaust fumes. Just think, although a big passenger plane might produce 5x more pollution, it also Carry’s 20-50x more people, and so the pollution produced per persons is 4-10x more for private jet passengers vs passenger plane passengers. It’s a bit of a brainer lol
Even if a private jet uses less fuel than another plane, it isn’t a huge difference. It might use anywhere from 1/2 to 1/10th of the fuel, but it carries anywhere from 1/100th to 1/500th the passenger count.
An Airbus A380 can hold north of 500 passengers in a typical configuration. A 787 Dreamliner can hold about 240 in a typical configuration. A private jet might hold 10ish people? That’s where the inefficiency of them lies.
The plane itself isn’t the problem. It’s the fact that it’s 1 person being transported whenever they like, instead of everyone getting on 1 plane. Like, a bus is bigger than a car, but if everyone on the bus instead drove their own car, it would be way worse for the environment.
Latest Answers