ECO-WARRIORS Prince Harry and his wife Meghan Markle regularly choose the luxury of private jets over saving the planet, Sun analysis suggests.
Despite calling climate change “terrifying” and pledging two years ago to go “net zero”, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex can’t break their addiction to carbon-spewing international travel.
This weekend the Sussexes used a Gulfstream jet for a 720-mile round trip to Las Vegas to attend a Katy Perry concert, joining showbiz pals Cameron Diaz and Zoe Saldana.
Air travel is believed to contribute to five per cent of the world’s global warming, even though only around 11 per cent of the population fly.
Private jets are an even greater eco-offence, with estimates that they can produce as much as ten times the amount of carbon per passenger of a commercial flight depending on the number of people on board.
Harry has admitted “we are all responsible for our own individual impact”, yet both he and his wife have travelled on small planes to get to parties, even when a more environmentally friendly train is an alternative.
Read More in The Sun
Here we look at the private jet journeys of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, who have lived in California since quitting the UK over three years ago.
Pre-wedding
Meghan hitched a ride on a pal’s private jet from Toronto in Canada to Montego Bay in Jamaica in March 2017.
There she met Harry, who was celebrating the marriage of his “wingman” pal Tom “Skippy” Inskip at an exclusive resort.
Prior to their wedding in Windsor, the couple flew to George and Amal Clooney’s holiday pad on Lake Como in Italy in August 2018.
Most read in Royals
They are said to have gone there and back in private jets, having partied with pals.
Party trips
Even though it is possible to take the train from Britain to Amsterdam in Holland, the then-royal pair decided in October 2018 to hop on a luxury Dassault Falcon 7X jet instead.
They were there to celebrate Soho House founder Nick House’s 55th birthday.
Displaying a greater love for Meghan than the planet, Harry took a private jet back home from the Arctic Circle in Norway on February 14 2019 to be with his new wife for Valentine’s Day in the UK.
He had been in Scandinavia to meet British Armed Forces who were taking part in survival training exercises.
Meghan returned home to the UK from a star-studded baby shower in New York that same month on a Gulfstream G450 twin engine jet.
During the trip she stayed at a lavish Manhattan hotel, visited Ralph Lauren’s Polo Bar and hung out with tennis champion Serena Williams.
Four flights in 11 days
In an act of extreme eco-hypocrisy Harry flew to a climate change summit on the Italian island of Sicily on a private jet in August 2019.
At the private high-powered bash he reportedly delivered a speech about the dangers of man-made global warming.
During his stay at the Google Camp the prince is believed to have slept on a superyacht, which is also environmentally unfriendly.
Just a few days later Harry, Meghan and their son Archie hopped on a private jet to the Spanish island of Ibiza for a family holiday.
The trip included a celebration of the Duchess’s 38th birthday.
To maintain a high level of much-needed protection, we provided them with a private jet flight
Sir Elton John
In the same month Sir Elton John flew his royal friends to the south of France and back on his 12-seater Cessna plane – the fourth private jet journey in 11 days.
The pop singer later defended the decision saying: “To maintain a high level of much-needed protection, we provided them with a private jet flight.”
Following a backlash about their use of private jets, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex mainly flew commercial flights for their official tour of South Africa, Botswana, Angola and Malawi in October 2019.
But royal expense accounts later revealed that private jets were used during the tour.
Criss-crossing America
Having turned his back on Britain at the start of 2020, Harry and Meghan headed to Florida where he gave a speech for JP Morgan bank.
They travelled in February on a top of the range Gulfstream 6 jet, and while in the Sunshine State, the couple dined with Jennifer Lopez.
With the world locking down due to Covid-19, the Sussexes made a dash from Canada to Los Angeles on a private jet in March 2020.
It was reported that they wanted to be in California to establish a permanent home before the borders closed.
The plane was an Embraer Lineage 1000E worth £43million, reportedly provided by billionaire actor and director Tyler Perry, which boasts a luxury lunge and separate bedroom and can carry up to 120 passengers.
It takes just two hours to fly from Aspen in Colorado to Los Angeles, but Harry chose to make the short internal flight on a pal’s Gulfstream jet in August 2021.
The prince had been taking part in a charity polo match.
The campaigning couple flew home from New York on a Dassault Falcon 2000 jet in September 2021, having talked about making sure everyone in the world had access to the Covid-19 vaccine.
The issue of climate change was also addressed by others at the Global Citizen Live summit during their trip.
Meghan decided to make a floral tribute in May 2022 to the 19 children and two teachers murdered at Robb Elementary School in Texas by a crazed gunman.
The 1,400 mile journey from her home in California to lay the white roses was made on a private jet.
Long haul luxury
A month later the Duke and Duchess returned from the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations in England on a Bombardier Global 6000 private jet.
The 13 passenger plane is said to include a “private stateroom” and can travel for 6,000 miles without refuelling.
Harry was back on board a private jet for another jaunt to Aspen in August 2022 for a polo match.
He was spotted boarding a Bombardier Challenger 600 at a Santa Barbara airport in California.
Most of the Royal Family flew up to Balmoral Castle in September 2022 on a private jet as soon as they heard the terrible news that Queen Elizabeth II was on her deathbed.
But Harry is said to have taken a separate private flight from London to Aberdeen.
Not zero
It seems the Sussexes don’t like flying coast to US coast commercial, choosing to charter a private flight to get to New York again in December 2022.
This time the woke pair were collecting an award from the Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights foundation for standing up to alleged “structural racism” in the British Royal Family.
Later in the same month, the Duchess was spotted getting on a private plane from Indianapolis in Indiana.
She had spoken at an event titled The Power of Women: An Evening with Meghan.
This October, Harry and Meghan boarded a Dassault Falcon 7X jet in New Jersey to fly to the Caribbean.
They stayed on the exclusive island of Canouan in St Vincent.
Read More on The Sun
The couple’s latest jaunt on a private jet – owned by oil heir Michael Herd – took them to Vegas for the Katy Perry gig, flying 40 minutes each way.
Royal expert Angela Levin told The Sun: “This is why we call them eco-hypocrites.”
https://www.thesun.co.uk/feed/
Grant Rollings
