Prince Charles is receiving criticisms for taking trips using costly and carbon-emitting private jets in 11 days. One of the highlights of these trips was Prince Charles meeting climate activist Greta Thunberg during an economic forum in Davos, Switzerland to urge businessmen to save the environment.
According to Daily Mail, a few empty flights were dispatched in Vienna to pick up the Prince of Wales. Apparently, these flights dumped about 10,000 tons of carbon in the air.
Prince Charles, then, flew to the capital of Oman to welcome its new sultan, on the orders of the Queen. His plane returned to Vienna without any passengers, dumping an additional 26 to 34 tons of carbon in the atmosphere.
Sources said that a different plane fetched Prince Charles from Oman to take him back to Buckingham. The plane originated from England, which meant that the aircraft took a round-trip flight, dumping another 33 tons of carbon.
Prince Charles also flew to Israel after his trip to Davos to mark the 75th anniversary of the Nazi concentration camp liberation in Auschwitz-Birkena. On top of these private jet trips, Prince Charles also took a couple of private helicopter rides to see the Queen and then to head home in Scotland. Aside from the carbon emissions, these rides also cost taxpayers' money, which doesn't come cheap.
However, Clarence House said in a statement that global travel is part of the job of Prince Charles, as a senior member of the royal family who needs to represent the United Kingdom overseas. His official travels are at the request of the government of Britain and he has no hand in the travel arrangements.
Meanwhile, the Prince of Wales met with climate activist Greta Thunberg during the World Economic Forum in Davos. In his speech, Prince Charles urged world leaders to take action in saving the environment so that the young ones will stop accusing the older generation of not doing anything. At Davos, Prince Charles apparently got around using an electric vehicle from Jaguar.
The criticisms come as Prince Charles' son and daughter-in-law Prince Harry and Meghan Markle also drew flak last year for taking several private jet trips over the summer. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex were invited to France and Spain aboard the plane owned by Elton John. Prince Harry and Meghan were labeled hypocrites for flying and contributing to carbon emissions while professing that the protection of the environment.
