Elon Musk's private jet has already made hundreds of flights this year.
- Elon Musk private jets have made hundreds of flights in 2023.
- According to JetSpy, the billionaire's plane has flown more than 1,161 hours this year.
- After acquiring Twitter in 2022, Musk had a busy year.
Managing six companies won't be easy, but Elon Musk's private jet will certainly help.
Since taking over Twitter (now X) late last year, Musk has been shuttling between Texas and California — from sleeping on the floor of a Tesla factory to sleeping in Twitter's office — as evidenced by the mileage of his private jet.
Musk's private jet, worth more than $100 million, has taken off 441 times this year, according to data compiled by jet tracking website JetSpy as of Dec. 14.
According to JetSpy, Musk currently owns two Gulfstream private jets: a G650ER (registration number N628TS) and a G550 (registration number N272BG).
The second G550, tail number N502SX, was registered with SpaceX in September 2021, and as of December 14, the aircraft had flown about 630 hours in 246 flights and could be used to carry company personnel, JetSpy reported.
For the purposes of this article, the second G550 is not included in the billionaire's total number of flights, as the aircraft is not registered under Musk's name.
In addition to his two private jets, Musk reportedly ordered the recently launched Gulfstream G700 and at one point owned a Dassault Falcon 900B.
The G650ER, which Musk bought in 2016, is the longest-range aircraft in the series and will allow the billionaire to fly non-stop for about 14,000 kilometers. Gulfstream's large jets, such as Elon Musk's, often come with bedrooms.
Elon Musk's G650ER private jet landed at an airport in Beijing in May.
According to JetSpy, in 2023, these aircraft flew more than 1,161 hours, which equates to more than 48 days spent in the air.
JetSpy uses ADS-B data transmitted from multiple providers and networks to aggregate its flight information.
ADS-B is a public surveillance technology that broadcasts information such as GPS location and altitude from one aircraft to another, as well as ground stations. Last year, college student Jack Sweeney used it to spread Musk's flight data on social media, and the technology made headlines.
Since then, the billionaire has tried to hide his flight information using a program set up by the Federal Aviation Administration, but to no avail. Flight enthusiasts continue to use the ADS-B network to track Musk's travels.
There is no way to know who the passengers are on any flight on the plane. Although Musk has been seen boarding different planes on different occasions, and the plane's flight trajectory sometimes coincides with events such as Musk's public visit to a SpaceX launch or meeting with foreign officials.
13 hours of trekking and 5 minutes of hopping
In 2023, the average flight time of Musk's two planes is just over two and a half hours, which is similar to the time it takes for a plane to fly from Hawthorne, California (where SpaceX's headquarters is located) to Brownsville, Texas (SpaceX's launch site, where Musk moved Tesla's headquarters).
For Musk's G650, the jet's most popular destinations are Austin, Texas, as well as airports in Oakland, California, and San Jose. The private jet has flown 166 sorties this year.
Meanwhile, as of December 14, Musk's Gulfstream G550, tail numbered N2727BG, has made 275 flights, according to JetSpy. The aircraft frequently visits airports in Hawthorne and Los Angeles, California, as well as Brownsville South Padre Island International Airport, near the SpaceX launch site.
In the past, Sweeney, who tracked Musk's private jet, has said that the billionaire's Xi flight patterns could be a lethal weapon to identify his plane, despite his attempts to mask his flight data.
Elon Musk's private jet flew with the PIA flag.
The longest flight Musk's jet has made in 2023 is the nearly 13-hour flight to Tokyo in August. Musk, his girlfriend Grimes and their three-year-old son were found in Tokyo at the time.
The billionaire's plane also flew several other international flights. Most recently, Musk's plane visited Israel in November. The billionaire met with foreign leaders and visited the kibbutz that was attacked by Hamas.
The plane's minimum flight time was five minutes, and data showed that the plane was still stuck at Long Beach Airport, an action that was most likely a pilot repositioning the plane.
This spring, Musk's jet also flew about 11 to 15 minutes between Hawthorne and Los Angeles airports, which are less than 16 kilometers apart.
While planes are convenient for Musk's busy lifestyle, they come at a heavy cost. According to JetSpy, the billionaire's plane emitted about 5,159 tons of carbon dioxide over the past year. In comparison, the average U.S. produces about 16 tons of carbon dioxide per person per year, according to the University Atmospheric Research Corporation.
What's more, JetSpy data shows that these jets consumed 2 million litres of fuel in 2023, which means it costs more than $3.2 million to refuel the aircraft this year.
Overall, Musk's jets appear to have flown fewer times this year than last year. In 2022, his aircraft flew 739 times for a total of 1,865 hours.