As the World Economic Forum (WEF) unfolds in Davos, Switzerland, the usual rush of influential figures—CEOs, politicians, and business leaders—have descended on the alpine town. Despite the WEF’s push for more sustainable travel, the data paints a different picture. Private jet activity in Switzerland has surged, hinting that many delegates have yet to embrace greener alternatives.
The WEF made efforts this year to encourage delegates to reconsider their travel choices. They offered free train tickets to Davos, even providing snow grips for attendees to walk instead of driving. But did it have an impact? Not quite, as the number of private jets landing in Switzerland tells a different story.
Flightradar24, a flight-tracking platform, recorded a sharp increase in private jet arrivals in the past few days, particularly at Zurich Airport, the main gateway to Davos. On Monday alone, 54 private jets touched down, a 170% spike compared to the previous week. Zurich Airport confirmed that it typically sees an additional 1,000 flight movements during the WEF, comprising business jets, state planes, and even helicopters.
Other nearby airports, like Saint Moritz and Friedrichshafen, also saw a notable uptick in private jet traffic, with Friedrichshafen reporting 33% more flights than usual. Notably, Zurich played host to one of the longest private jet journeys of the week, with a €72 million Bombardier Global 7500 flying 12,404 km from Kailua-Kona in Hawaii, a 14-hour and 40-minute journey. Other jets arrived from distant places like California and Beijing, though it’s unclear if their passengers were headed to Davos.
While the WEF cannot definitively say who is flying in on private jets—many are chartered by various companies, such as VistaJet or NetJets—some government officials were easier to track. Representatives from Libya, Iraq, and Poland flew in on large aircraft, with the latter two opting for massive Boeing 737s, likely carrying just a handful of passengers.
Once they’ve landed, it doesn’t always end there. Several delegates were spotted hopping into helicopters to complete the final leg of their journey to Davos, adding even more emissions to the already significant carbon footprint of the event. The environmental group Greenpeace was quick to respond. Activists blocked access to the Davos Lago heliport on Monday, demanding tax reforms that would hold the world’s wealthiest accountable for their disproportionate environmental impact. A day later, Greenpeace activists unfurled a banner in the WEF’s congress hall, calling for a “fair and green future.”
Today, thousands of self-proclaimed corporate and governmental “elites” will arrive in private jets for the WEF’s annual Davos summit, where they will spend days lecturing all us peasants about the need to eat insects, walk to work and own nothing under the guise of tackling… pic.twitter.com/8kpC5aH6v0
— Wide Awake Media (@wideawake_media) January 20, 2025
Denise Auclair of the NGO Transport and Environment pointed out that, despite the WEF’s sustainability efforts, private jet travel continues to dominate. She argued that the WEF needs to take the lead on this issue, putting sustainable travel directly on its agenda and setting an example for the rest of the world.
So, why do business and political leaders keep hopping on private jets? The most common excuse is time. A private jet offers a faster, more efficient way to travel, allowing busy executives to make the most of their time. While this reasoning might be valid for long-haul flights—like those from Hawaii or the U.S.—shorter flights from places like Milan or Paris are harder to justify. A private jet might get you to Davos in under an hour, but a train journey takes only three hours and 12 minutes, with the added bonus of comfortable seating and WiFi to work during the ride.
Transport and Environment reached out to 100 companies known for their use of private jets, urging them to avoid flying private to Davos. Only two companies responded positively—Saint-Gobain and KPMG—committing to rail or commercial flights for their delegates.
Environmental organizations have pointed out the stark inequality symbolized by private jet travel to events like Davos. “Any private jet going to Davos sends the message that these global companies, with all their means and power, lack the real will to make simple changes that could help keep global temperatures below 1.5 degrees,” said Auclair.
The environmental toll of private jets is well-documented. They are the most carbon-intensive mode of transport, producing significantly more emissions per passenger than commercial flights or trains. Between 2019 and 2023, emissions from private jets rose by 46%. In 2023 alone, private jets emitted 15.6 million tonnes of CO2—equivalent to nearly 40 billion miles driven in a petrol car. While this is only 1.8% of total global emissions, it is a disproportionate amount given that the vast majority of these flights are taken by a small, elite group of people.
Private jets are also notorious for their short flights. Almost half of the 19 million private jet trips studied between 2019 and 2023 covered distances of less than 500 km. On a per-passenger basis, private jets are 5 to 14 times more polluting than commercial flights and 50 times more than trains.
Beyond CO2 emissions, private jets release other harmful pollutants, such as nitrogen oxides, sulphur oxides, and soot, into the atmosphere at high altitudes, where their impact is even more damaging. While we know the emissions from private jets are harmful, the full extent of their environmental damage—particularly from non-CO2 emissions—remains poorly understood. Some studies suggest that non-CO2 emissions may contribute up to four times as much warming as CO2 alone.
The evidence is clear: reducing private jet travel could significantly benefit the environment. But as long as the world’s elite continue to prioritize convenience over the planet’s future, meaningful change seems out of reach.
