How many times a year do you go abroad be it for holidays or business?

Generally at least two flight a week, sometimes as many as eight. 95% work related. I fly to London and back weekly, and probably do 6 - 7 US trips per year also.

Just to add an extra dimension to your argument. This is a very small island. If people couldn't come and go for business, what do you think would happen to the economy? And its the stable and developed economy that allows us all the luxury of being in a position to think about the environment, and not just where our next meal is coming from.

It's not really difficult, especially if you don't work a Mon to Fri job. Have 4 days off Mon to Thurs, you can get great deals.

Used to travel 60 times a year all over the world before COVID. This is one positive of Covid, I can now do a lot over the net with meetings. Certain things still need to be attended due to business and cannot be avoided.

Now its down to around 15 trip a year, 12 for business and 3-4 for Vacation.

Aviation is in the Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS)

Applying excise duty to aviation fuel can only happen at the EU level.

The first country to apply a tax won't sell a litre more fuel, as airlines will buy elsewhere.

Haven't been outside this country in.... 8 years? Yeah, sounds about right. In my younger days, I've visited Belgium (twice), the UK a few times and Florida and the Netherlands once. I was mad for wanting to travel more when I was younger, but nowadays I'm not too pushed. If I won the lotto, I'd do a themepark world tour. But outside of winning the lotto, there isn't really anywhere I can afford to go.

I think too much about things, so there's very few countries I want to visit. I'm not into sport, architecture, religion, history, geography, and I detest the idea of spending a hape of money to sit on some foreign beach. Japan is somewhere I'd love to visit, but I don't think I'd cope with the crowds and it's still quite expensive. Plus you'd need weeks there. So also on the lotto list.

And when I say afford, I mean nothing really makes me want to spend money on it. I love those Expectation vs Reality photos, makes me want to go to these places less. And now they're all covered with social media wannabes, ugh.

Global aviation pollution is 3.5% of overall, so not a massive area to tackle, albeit it should be tackled. I just don't understand how they make money on cheap flights. The below article breaks down the actual costs of flights taking everything into consideration, and basically ended stating shorthaul EU flight for 2.5 hours costs $12k, but tickets are cheap as chips... Someone somewhere is paying!

Some people here, a good few even, have massive carbon travel related footprints. But would likely turn around and criticise the likes of us for burning a few bags of coal in the winter whilst they sit in tee shirts in their heating systems driven by industrial wind farms that we have to look out on. But there you go, that's the way of it for the urbanites now :)

How do you know the people here who are travelling the most are from urban areas? They could be from rural areas, commuting 80k each way to Dublin in an SUV, with a few large dogs at home.

I travel quite a bit, probably every second week with work and go abroad once a year for holidays. Mostly Europe, but also a couple of long haul. This year I have been to the US, UAE, Malaysia, Australia and NZ. Next year I my long hauls will be to Brazil and Vietnam.

I have a fairly big carbon travel footprint, mainly due to long haul flights. I also burn fuel in my stove and have gas central heating in a BER F rated house.

On the flip side, I've an early 2000's car that I rarely drive / have no intention of upgrading and cycle everywhere. No kids either.

Some people will have a big carbon footprint from one thing, others from other things. The trick is to stop criticising people and mind your own business.

I'd say the trick is for you to take personal responsibility for your own large carbon footprint. I've no interest in it - for you to sort out and others their own likewise.

I started tracking my flights in 2014. Totalled 189 flights in that time (have 4 more flights booked up to the middle of August), 678,000km and 960 hours in the air.

Average of 18 flights a year.

Highest was 46 in 2019.

Took 7 in 2020, all before March.

It's practically all work travel and average 1 holiday a year.

What job requires that much fling ? Unless your the captain or cabin crew ?

I know a good few field service engineers who cover multiple countries.

The guys I usually see are based in Birmingham and service UK and Ireland, but could also cover France, Benelux, Germany, and Spain if their guys are on holiday or busy. They could easily do a dozen short hops a month depending on the calls.