First, they came for the private jets and then they came for our pop stars. Taylor Swift’s reputation is under fire once again, as she was named the top offender of “Celebs With the Worst Private Jet CO2 Emissions†on Yard. Using data from the Twitter account @CelebJets, Swift, alongside Floyd Mayweather, Jay-Z, A-Rod, Blake Shelton, and more, were called out for their private-jet usage in 2022. Swift’s private jet reportedly amassed 170 flights, or “22,923 minutes in the air,†totaling almost 16 days. The total emissions of the year came to about 8,293.54 tonnes, “or 1,184.8 times more than the average person’s total annual emissions.†A representative for Swift responded to the report, per BuzzFeed News, explaining that her private jet is “loaned out regularly†to unnamed individuals. “To attribute most or all of these trips to her is blatantly incorrect,†wrote the representative.
Other celebrities, even those not in the initial Yard report, have been criticized for their private-jet usage over the past week. Kylie Jenner was called a “climate criminal†for her “17-minute flights,†the shortest flight being three minutes. Regardless of who or what is actually on the flights, their damage to the environment is irreversible. Perhaps that’s why Swift shielded herself with a large black umbrella when the Daily Mail snapped photos of her deplaning in early July. She was reportedly returning to Los Angeles from a London funeral for her muse, Joe Alwyn’s, great-uncle. Later that month, a couple more international flights allowed her to give a monologue at HAIM’s show but still make it to a photo op at Selena Gomez’s 30th birthday party the next day. The salt air and rust on Swift’s private-jet door will never be the same.
This post has been updated.