SANTA BARBARA, CALIFORNIA: The Texan oil heir Michael Herd's private airliner flew the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, who have been vocal on environmental problems in the past, along with other celebrities from Santa Barbara to Las Vegas.
The couple had flown on a jet jointly owned by Herd, who has become quite closer to the Sussexes in recent months together with his wife Whitney Wolfe, who also happens to be the billionaire founder of the dating app Bumble.
They accompanied Cameron Diaz and her husband Benji Madden, as well as actress Zoe Saldana, on a 40-minute Gulfstream private jet to attend singer Katy Perry's final show of her Vegas residency.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have been labeled "eco-hypocrites" after flying on a private jet to Perry’s concert.
The Duke had previously established his charity Travalyst to promote sustainable and eco-friendly tourism, prompting allegations of hypocrisy.
Harry and Meghan’s tiff with the royals continues
Just hours after the Sussexes were pictured at the Vegas concert, the Duke's brother, Prince William, flew to Singapore on a commercial British Airways aircraft to attend the Earthshot Prize ceremonies, recognizing recipients for their contributions to environmental stewardship.
According to Royals expert Angela Levin, Harry, who is still a patron of the charity, should “get the sack” for his decision to fly privately.
Levin told the Sun: “He set up this Travalyst charity which was all about not using private planes. He’s still their patron. I think he should get the sack.”
“They think they have gotten so grand, they wouldn't dream of taking a normal flight.”
“They've got all these rich friends to pay for it. It's worse than 'do as I say, not as I do' because he's a patron of a charity.” they added.
“William was welcomed hugely in Singapore, which must have annoyed Harry and Meghan. This sort of behavior is exactly why we call them eco-hypocrites.”
According to the Sun, the 2009 Gulfstream jet emits approximately 1.8 tonnes of CO2 each hour, which is over a fifth of the 7.4 tons produced by the average British citizen each year.
Per the Paris Agreement's goal of keeping global warming below 2 degrees Celsius, each person's carbon budget should be no more than 2.1 tons per year.
In 2019, Harry helped launch Travalyst, a charity that intends to assist travelers to "make informed decisions, learn what good looks like, and, ultimately, become more sustainable travelers."
One blog post on the charity's website encourages people to “consider greener transport options such as coaches, ferries, or trains” when traveling, and if traveling by plane, to choose economy because it's “more space-efficient than roomier options, which means your share of the flight's carbon footprint is lower”.
The Sussexes are also no strangers to private jets. In 2019, Harry and Meghan were chastised for taking four private jet trips in the span of 11 days, including one to Sir Elton John's house in Nice.
Last month, Harry and Meghan took a private plane to the Caribbean after attending a symposium on the impact of climate change on mental health.
After attending a conference in New York on October 10, the couple flew from New Jersey to Canouan aboard a Dassault Falcon 7X jet, and then again for a four-hour journey between the island retreat and Atlanta, Georgia.
Harry has previously stated that he travels on commercial airlines "99% of my life," while indicating that he occasionally employs private jets to "ensure my family are safe."
Harry won’t attend his father King Charles’ 75th birthday
The debacle surrounding the Sussexes' overuse of private jets comes after it was revealed that Harry had declined an invitation to his father King Charles' historic 75th birthday party.
The monarch will honor the landmark milestone with a celebration at Clarence House in London a week today.
A representative for the couple, however, has stated that they have yet to receive any missive from Buckingham Palace regarding His Majesty's 75th birthday.
According to the Sunday Times, Prince Harry had declined an invitation to the birthday bash and will instead remain in California.
However, the couple's spokesperson informed MailOnline that they were never notified about the celebrations in the first place.
“There has been no contact regarding an invitation to His Majesty's upcoming birthday. It is disappointing the Sunday Times has misreported this story,” they said.
A source close to Prince Harry and Meghan Markle told MailOnline that the couple were not invited to the plans, which they were absolutely unaware of.
“They had not received any invitation and were unaware of any celebrations until the stories came out,” they said.
Despite the growing chasm between the Sussexes and the rest of the Royal family, they said that Harry and Meghan would normally be included in arrangements for such important occasions.
“In this case, they aren't and that's okay. I'm sure the Duke will find a way to reach out privately to wish His Majesty a happy birthday like he always done."
“The story in The Times as well as subsequent stories have been positioned in a way to make it look like the Duke is snubbing his father, which he is not.”
Netizens slam 'eco hypocrite' Harry
The news of the Sussexes' night out with their A-list celebrity friends aboard a Gulfstream jet didn’t go down well in the public eye.
One X user wrote: “Eco hypocrite”
Another user wrote: “Nobody can take the Royals seriously what they say about climate change when their own Carbon Footprintz are enormous”
Another person quipped: “Was this an actual picture...Harry looks like he wants to crawl under the chair.”
One person said: “We don’t care . Focus on your tax funded royals.”
Another X user wrote: “it's when your daytime vegan but you happen to own a cow farm.”
Another user said: “You couldn't make it up. It would be branded as too far fetched and unbelievable hypocrisy.”
One X user wrote: “Mr. Climate Change wannabe hypocrite warrior”
Another user said: “They are just hypocrites. PERIOD!”
