Louis Vuitton's Founder And CEO Sold His Private Jet Because Twitter Users Are Tracking Him

Bernard Arnault is the founder and the CEO of the famous luxury-goods company LVMH.

As the second most richest person in the world, he decides to sell his $73 million Bombardier Global 7500 private jet, simply because Twitter users were following him around.

Arnault confirmed the speculations.

"Indeed, with all these stories, the group had a plane and we sold it," Arnault said to Radio Classique, a LVMH-owned radio station. "The result now is that no one can see where I go because I rent planes when I use private planes."

By renting private places instead of owning then, the 73-year-old billionaire can ensure that his privacy remains intact.

It all began when Twitter accounts, like I Fly Bernard and Bernard’s Airplane have been tracking Bernard Arnault's planes.

These accounts, as well as some others, sprung out from no where to track private jets, as well as to point out the pollution they cause.

These accounts tracked Arnault's and other rich people's use of private jets by tracking the planes’ transponder signals and publicly accessible information.

They have pointed out that rich people's private planes coming from France alone have emitted 203 tons of CO₂ into the atmosphere through over 48 hours of flights. And that was in September 2022.

In France, the subject became a hot topic, with some politicians proposing to ban or tax private jets.

Then, it was one of the Twitter accounts that followed Arnault said one of LVMH's private jets had ceased to be registered in France.

"Still no word from either Bernard Arnault or LVMH on the subject of private jets,” Bernard’s Airplane wrote on September 10.

"So Bernard, are you hiding?"

Aviation produces just under one billion tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions annually, accounting for 2.5% of global CO₂ pollution.

The thing is, a small number of people are responsible for a large bulk of the impact.

Because money can buy many good things in life, the uber rich can enjoy the freedom of the skies, without having to be crammed with anyone else but themselves and their guests.

These private jets have smaller engines that are much less powerful than commercial planes. However, the rich and famous fly with these jets for both business and pleasure. As a result, some of these jets can have a high mileage, simply because their owners fly with them frequently.

In the process for routinely taking short flights, jet engines that produce the most amount of emission during take off, make them worse polluters, in carbon emission/kilometer, than commercial planes that have more and bigger engines, but can carry hundreds of passengers in one go.

According to European non-governmental organisation (NGO) Transport & Environment (T&E), private jets are five to 14 times more polluting than commercial planes per passenger, and 50 times more than high-speed rail, emitting two tons of CO₂ in a single hour.

And Bernard Arnault, the CEO of luxury brand LVMH that is known for expensive labels like Louis Vuitton, has has been included in the exclusive world's richest list for years.

With his net worth that surpassed a centibillionaire, he's also known for, is his consistent use of his private jet.

Bernard Arnault's five children - Delphine, Antoine, Alexandre, Frédéric and Jean - control different parts of his empire.

And in an occasion, Antoine defended the use of private jets on a television show.

"This plane is a work tool," he said. "Our industry is hyper-competitive," and a private plane gives executives an edge in the race to be first to a new product or deal, he said.

The younger Arnault also confirmed that LVMH sold its planes over the summer.

He also said that there’s another reason for keeping the company’s travels secret.

“It’s not very good that our competitors can know where we are at any moment,” he said.

“That can give ideas, it can also give leads, clues.”

The plane the Arnault had, was the Bombardier Global 7500.

The jet was first introduced in December 2018, and has been the choice for several other wealthy individuals, including Kylie Jenner and Australian billionaire Andrew Forrest.

Among its advantages, include a long-range flight ability, in which it can fly nonstop for 7,700 nautical miles, per the company's website. Global 7500 is also considered a large aircraft, especially when it comes to private jets, measuring 33 meters in length, with a wingspan of 31 meters. In its stock form, its interior is designed to accommodate at least 19 passengers.

Bombardier has only made 100 of the Global 7500 jets as of March 2022.

Bernard Arnault is not the only rich person to come under scrutiny.

Previously, critics slammed singer Tailor Swift after her frequent use of a private jet made her top a list of those causing major carbon emissions.

Billionaire Elon Musk was also criticized when transponder signals showed his $70 million private Gulfstream private jet flew just nine minutes from San Jose to San Francisco.

Musk offered $5,000 to the person behind the Twitter account that tracked his travel, asking the person to shut it down. He failed to get the account shut down.

"I don't love the idea of being shot by a nutcase," Musk said.

Meta's founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg was also criticized.

Billionaire investor Mark Cuban was also criticized, especially when he made a deal with a man who tracked and shared his flight data by offering him business advice in exchange for deleting the account.

Other A-listers criticized for their extensive use of private jets, include Kylie Jenner, Drake, Floyd Mayweather, Jay-Z, Alex Rodriguez, Blake Shelton, Steven Spielberg, Mark Wahlberg, Oprah Winfrey, and others.

Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates was also criticized.

In 2021 it was reported that he has not one, not two, not even three, but four private jet. According to the media, he owns two Gulfstream G650ERs that each cost about $70 million, and two Bombardier Challenger 350s, each worth about $27 million.

The founder of Microsoft also owns a Eurocopter EC 135 and a Cessna 208 Amphibian Caravan seaplane in addition to his fleet of private jets.

Gates has called private jets his "guilty pleasure."

For business people, time is money. And when privacy and security are also crucial, many rich people prefer to fly in private.

When commercial first class is no longer an option, the rich who can afford to fly using private jets can experience additional perks, which include: the ability to land closer to their destination, having no intermediate stops, take off whenever they want, and more. Flying using private jets also allow those people to have their personal driver to drive them you directly to the runway.

This saves a lot of time.

And more, flying with private jets allows rich people to have the whole plane to themselves and their entourage. They can smoke and bring their pets if they wish, and choose to have whatever delicacy onboard.

There is more, because private jets tend to come equipped with luxuries that don't come on commercial planes. And owning a plane means that the owner can customize the plane to whatever he/she desires.

In short, whereas flying in a commercial aircraft means that everything revolves around the airline, flying private jets puts the owner/charterer first. This allows them to have the freedom to determine the destination and time of their flight themselves, and to fly in an environment that is tailored to their very needs.

While the experience of private flying is undoubtedly exclusive, the benefits include so much more than luxury.