Elon Musk’s private jets have been quite active this year, taking to the skies a total of 441 times as of December 14, according to data from the jet-tracking site JetSpy. Musk owns two Gulfstream private jets: a G650ER (registered N628TS) and a G550 (registered N272BG). The second G550 (N502SX), registered to SpaceX, was not included in Musk’s total flights for this year as it is not registered to him.
Musk’s G650ER, acquired in 2016, is the longest-ranged plane in his collection, allowing for nonstop flights of around 8,600 miles. In 2023, Musk’s aircraft were in flight for more than 1,161 hours, equivalent to over 48 days of airtime. The average flight duration for Musk’s two jets this year was just over two and a half hours.
JetSpy aggregates flight information using ADS-B data, a public surveillance technology broadcasting GPS location and altitude information. Despite Musk’s attempts to cloak his flight data, enthusiasts continue to track his travels through the ADS-B network.
The destinations for Musk’s G650 include Austin, Texas, as well as airports in Oakland and San Jose, California, with 166 flights this year. The G550 (N2727BG) took 275 flights, frequently visiting airports in Hawthorne and Los Angeles, California, as well as Brownsville South Padre Island International Airport near SpaceX’s launch site.
Musk traveled abroad in August, taking his aircraft on a roughly 13-hour flight to Tokyo, where he was pictured with his partner Grimes and their three-year-old son X. In November, the aircraft made a journey to Israel, where Musk had meetings with foreign dignitaries.
Nevertheless, there are financial and environmental costs associated with using private aircraft. In 2023, Musk’s aircraft are expected to have released 5,159 metric tons of CO2 and used 538,957 gallons of fuel, at a cost over $3.2 million. It’s important to note that Musk’s aircraft appear to have flown less in 2022—a year in which they flew 739 times for 1,865 hours—than in 2022.