The European Business Aviation Association (EBAA) is refuting a recent report from Greenpeace that claims “European private jet pollution doubled in one year.” Conducted by CE Delft, the Greenpeace-commissioned study states that the number of private flights increased by 64 percent in 2022 and 87 percent at Dutch Airports. It further claims that CO2 emissions from private flights in the Netherlands more than doubled during the time—amounting to 53,000 tonnes—and called for the EU and national governments “to ban private jets as part of a plan to tackle the climate crisis in a more equitable way.”

EBAA called the data incorrect and a distorted picture since it does not take into account data from before the Covid pandemic. “The number of European business flights is compared by Greenpeace to a historically low point during the Covid-19 crisis, instead of a regular year without travel restriction,” EBAA said. “This creates an image of explosive growth even if that did not actually take place.”

Pointing to Eurocontrol data comparing 2022 with 2019 activity, EBAA said business aviation activity has grown by 7 percent instead of 64 percent. “Despite a temporary peak in the number of business flights after the reopening of international borders, EBAA reports a stagnation in that growth in the first months of this year, which could potentially turn into a slight decline,” the association said, adding that Greenpeace “systematically ignores the context of business aviation.”

EBAA reiterated the small contribution of business aviation to global CO2 emissions, noting that worldwide it represents just 0.04 percent of the total. Further, the association maintained that business aviation has served as a breeding ground for aviation sustainability.

“Contrary to what Greenpeace wants to believe, business aviation is actually driving aviation sustainability,” the association said, pointing to the industry-wide established goal of achieving net-zero by 2050.