Majority of Swiss have no qualms about flying, says survey

Keystone/gaetan Bally

Despite climate change, 58% of Swiss do not feel guilty about flying, according to a recent survey

In total, around half of those questioned said they wanted to fly abroad this summer, reported the Le Matin DimancheExternal link and the SonntagsZeitung External linkon Sunday. Of these, 58% said they had no guilty conscience. 

The over-65s were the age category least likely to fly (44%) with 45% admitting to feeling guilty about it. On the other hand, 18–35-year-olds were the ones most likely to fly this summer (59%) but only 31% had a guilty conscience about it.

There were also disparities in terms of political orientation. Only one in five respondents to the right and centre of the political spectrum said one should be ashamed of flying. This figure rises to 53% for supporters of the Social Democrats, 57% for the Liberal Greens and 71% for the Greens.

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A total of 13,660 Swiss residents were surveyed by LeeWas Institute on behalf of Tamedia and 20 Minuten media from June 15-18.

Prior to the Covid-19  pandemic, the average Swiss flew about 9,000km per year, twice as much as 20 years ago. The number of air travelers has increased in recent years. Pre-Covid-19, flying accounted for 10% of Swiss CO2 emissions, considerably more than the global figure of 2.5%.