Brief - The Hustle

Companies are spending big on private jets

Written by Rob Litterst | Jul 6, 2022 8:24:39 AM

While most of his attention is on the metaverse, Mark Zuckerberg has been doing some serious globe-trotting in the real world.

Corporate spending on private jets for CEOs and board members in the US hit a 10-year high in 2021, per Financial Times. Meta led the pack, and was the only tech company in the top five.

The S&P 500…

… spent $33.8m as a group, up 35% YoY. The increase has been attributed to the pandemic, as companies have tried to limit the risk of executives getting covid on commercial flights.

This has resulted in a nice windfall for private jet operators, including:

Jettly CEO Justin Crabbe doesn’t seem concerned about demand slowing anytime soon, telling FT, “it’s quite difficult to go back to flying commercial” after experiencing private flights.

Private jet expenses…

… are just one piece of CEO compensation, which has reached record levels in recent years.

At Meta’s latest annual meeting, 86% of shareholders voiced support for executive pay — the lowest number in the company’s history.

Perhaps shareholders would prefer Zuck spend more time jet-setting through digital worlds.