What would persuade frequent fliers to fly less?

[hippospot]

I read this very article and liked the suggestion of having to pay more for each subsequent flight you take in a year. Maybe a family who take one holiday a year won't be penalised but the people who fly multiple times a year would face increased penalties the more they fly. Currently 5% of the population is taking 33% of the flights!

I worry so much about climate change but people around me seem to not be making any adjustments to their carbon-heavy lifestyles. What could be the solution in your view?

I don't really want to debate whether flying is the biggest cause of climate change. It isn't. But it's one of the biggest discretionary changes we can make to our impact on the climate as individuals.

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2026/oct/03/heathrow-third-runway-climate-warnings-economic-reality?CMP=Share_AndroidApp_Other

Cost. Tax should be hiked big time. Frequent flying really isn't necessary. Before travel was so cheap if you emigrated you probably didn't get to see your relatives again. If your work is in South America you emigrated. That's life. I think that massive price increases are the only answer. There's no planet B.

Better trains to lots of a European cities

I used to fly at least twice a month because the CEO required me at a leadership meeting. I didn’t want to but it was part of the job. Most frequent flying is corporate I would think.

Fairly sure it is like golf - men go so they can get away from the family and pretend they have no responsibilities. Trying to convince men to actually be at home and potentially have to help out with the kids etc rather than fly off to a 5* hotel in a hot country is not an easy sell.

Which would you choose in that scenario?

They shouldn't be given the option! Businesses should be supporting employees family lives, not adding discord and distance. I say tax the companies more if they insist on sending people on flights. It is their issue if they can't run a good comms system without a round of golf with the lads thrown in.

I don’t think people should be flying round the world when it’s not necessary. I think all travel abroad should be way more expensive, including holidays.

But the family issue is separate. Employers are not there to ‘support family life’. If someone is high enough in the organisation to be flying round the world they they are clearly earning a high salary. That doesn’t tend to go hand in hand with 9-5, taking time to deal with sick kids etc. That is the case for men and women.

Oh and taxing them more will just make things more expensive for everyone. Fair enough if it’s for the environment but just for spite so that hubby can be home to put the kids to bed - not so much.

🤣

This won’t affect the rich, just stop the average Joe from getting cheap, short breaks away!

How many children do you have @hippospot and how many cars do you drive in your family?

Both of those things are far more damaging than flying on a commercial flight. Children born in the West use about 4 times the resources of someone living in the global south. Cars use petrol, but also consume huge resource in terms of roads, parking etc (land is a non-renewable resource) and manufacture.

I definitely don't approve of excessive business travel but I assume employees don't have much leeway to say no if travel is expected of them.

100% agree that billionaires shouldn't be taking private jets, yachts etc. I find the excess repugnant.

@Wadsworthymy carbon footprint is sub 4 tons a year of carbon, to answer your question. I make green choices every day and I worry a lot for the future of the planet. My drop in the ocean is exactly that, but it makes me feel better about an issue that really really worries me.

I'm actually surprised at how many people don't seem all that concerned. We are feeling the effects of climate change already.

Affordable rail travel.

I actually think regular work travel is a bigger issue than say 3 holidays a year. I think choosing to buy a holiday home and fly to it regularly is an issue. I think accepting a lucrative role which relies on you commuting to Germany or Ireland weekly is questionable. These things shouldn’t be so cheap. I think internal flights should be taxed more and trains subsidised more: it shouldn’t be so much cheaper to fly than take the train to Edinburgh; It shouldn’t be so much cheaper to drive than take to
the train to London. That’s before you look at the business travel so many pp’s have said could be a call.

None of this is easily resolved though and most people make the best choice available for themselves rather than look at the bigger picture, which is understandable.

Well then - job done.

I will hopefully be long dead before the planet goes up in flames luckily

Op assumed it's holidays. What about when families and best friends live in different countries, maybe even spouse on a work project? Even if there was cheaper train available to those locations it could take days of annual leave for the travel alone....

If as predicted AI massively reduces employment then there won’t be so much flying for business. And the unemployed won’t be able to afford their multiple holidays a year. Things could look very different in 10 years.

I assumed you would be talking about the likes of Taylor Swift rather than some ordinary family taking two holidays a year. Get a grip!

Better train links to Europe and more affordable prices. I would far rather get the train to and around Europe than fly but the Eurostar is miles more expensive and takes longer, especially when you can only get it from London. If it were the same price as a flight I would happily endure the extra time though. Hate flying.

This. So the OP is basically asking people who go on holiday a few times a year to limit something that gives them great joy and, unless they live in London/SE, isn't really practical to do without flying.

And as well as severely limiting holidays and short breaks for a lot of people, you're going to destroy/severely curb associated industry that it supports - hotels, restaurants, watersports etc as well as the people who work in aviation?

And if we did all that, it would make hardly any difference to the amount of air travel that happens (because there's also business travel, private planes and air freight) nor would it reduce global carbon emissions more than a tiny amount.

So OP, you're asking to destroy a lot of people's livelihoods and limit a lot of people's travel experiences because you think they should, even though it won't have the effect you think it will?

I used to feel like the op frankly I cba now. Life is too short. Me not having a summer holiday in southern Europe isn’t going to save the planet. I stopped at 2 / used reusable nappies / moon cup / refills / reduce meat eaten / ev car / cycle everywhere/ don’t do long haul. Draw the line at binning my two trips a year in Europe.

We did drive to southern Europe for a few years in an attempt to be worthy but it was horrible exhausting and more expensive.

To flight switch - cheaper trains and more annual leave to adjust for the time taken up by travelling.

I fully believe in climate change and am happy to do my bit, but its frustrating for it always to be us little guys bearing the responsibility when government and industry decisions are arguably more impactful..

How about limit everyone - whether you are Jane from Milton Keynes, or Kourtney Kardashian or Elon Musk, private jets or not, business or leisure - to 10 flights a year.

Unless this is an equal effort from everyone it's not reasonable to expect only those who have the least impact to change their ways.

Isn't it obvious? At least for flights to countries not so far away - cheaper train travel!
I fly around Europe because I can't afford the train prices!

Obviously once it's a certain distance it'll be plane for me regardless of price, but there are people who can sleep anywhere so those people might take sleeper trains if they have the time.

Yes, I have a mix of this kind of travel, but there are quite a lot of journeys I COULD do by train, but can't afford/workplace can't afford.

Nothing. I'm not going to hold my children or myself back from knowing their family and seeing the world, while the richest people on the planet use planes like they're buses for totally unnecessary journeys. If you were standing in front of me and asked me this question, I'd suggest you direct your question to those people first.