Revealed: 5,000 empty ‘ghost flights’ in UK since 2019, data shows
More than 5,000 completely empty passenger flights have flown to or from UK airports since 2019, the Guardian can reveal.
A further 35,000 commercial flights have operated almost empty since 2019, with fewer than 10% of seats filled, according to analysis of data from the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA). This makes a total of about 40,000 “ghost flights”.
In one quarter, for example, 62 empty planes left Luton airport for Poland, while in another, Heathrow saw 663 almost empty flights going to and from the US. Both quarters were during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Air travel results in more carbon emissions per hour than any other consumer activity and is dominated by a minority of frequent fliers, making it a focus of climate campaigners. They called the ghost flight revelations “shocking” and said a jet fuel tax was needed and airport expansion plans should be questioned. The UK government describes ghost flights as “environmentally damaging”.
Why ghost flights operate remains unclear. Only airlines know the reasons but they do not publish data that explains the practice. Ghost flights may run to fulfil “use-it-or-lose-it” airport slot rules, though these were suspended during the height of the pandemic. Other reasons cited by airlines include Covid repatriation flights or the repositioning of aircraft. But these cannot be verified and campaigners said more transparency is needed.
The new data gives the fullest picture to date of the number of UK ghost flights, as previous data only counted international departures. It now includes international arrivals and flights within the UK. The CAA will now publish this data quarterly, as a result of a series of FOI requests by The Guardian.
“Publication of this data is a step in the right
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