3 ms·

It’s actually more efficient for a person to fly 400mi in a reasonably full plain than it is to drive solo in an average American car

• fsslrisrchr 5y ago
  While true, this is a very dishonest view of the environmental impact of flying. At best, assuming a full flight and a long route, say >500 mi, (taking off is a large, fixed, cost) an aircraft gets about 100 passenger miles per gallon. Few ppl drive >100 mi by themselves. When I drive >300 mi, it's in a car full of five ppl. My big, mean, SUV gets 28 mpg * 5 passengers = 140 passenger miles/gallon. Or better than any fully laden airplane. The car is also fully laden, and I'm considering adding a hitch so I can attach a tray for more cargo (putting cargo on your roof kills your mpg) Also, I think the pandemic has demonstrated that most flying is discretionary. Stressed out management class types unwinding in a paradise island thousands of miles away. Or traveling to a conference. Very few passengers are a specialist that needs to be onsite. Add to that that flying necessarily means long distance runs, and it enables long distance travel. Meaning flying has enabled the transformation of society from a local, regional society, into a global one. One that consumes far more resources (for example, flying half way across the world to visit grandparents because your job is no longer available in your home country)