More than a quarter of flights from Leeds Bradford Airport in the first three months of the year carried less than 50 passengers, with some flights carrying no passengers and no cargo, government data shows.
In January to March 2021 7% of the flights were considered a ‘ghost flight’.
Doncaster Airport had 17% in the same period, but there were only 66 flights, compared to Leeds’ 184.
Nick Hodgkinson from The Group for Action on Leeds Bradford Airport (GALBA) said: “Every plane that flies emits carbon and other gases that damage the climate and make the world hotter.
“It is dangerous to allow flights that have few or no passengers or freight on board.”
Leeds Bradford Airport announced that they aim to be a net zero carbon airport by 2030, they have said that to date there have been 48% reduction in CO2 emissions.
The Summer is the airports busiest time of year, from July to September, there were 4620 arrival flights where 10% of the flights still had less than 50 passengers, for the departure flights there were 4638 where 10% of the flights had less than 50 passengers.
The GALBA member carried on by suggesting that the government should ban this practice as well as all airport expansion plans. “The proposed techno-solutions to aviation emissions – like ‘sustainable’ aviation fuels – are decades away from being used on a commercial scale for international flights. The only way to cut greenhouse gas emissions from flying is to fly less”.
Leeds Bradford Airport said it has installed LED motion censored lights to reduce energy usage, different speed drives have been fitted on the escalator to reduce power when it is a quiet period of time and upgrading the airfield light boxes to LEDs.
Mr. Hodgkinson from GALBA said: “Everything possible must be done as quickly as possible to cut greenhouse gas emissions. The world’s scientists repeatedly warn that all emissions must be cut in half by 2030.”
