Why walk when you can fly? That seems to be the question Kylie Jenner has been asking herself on a regular basis. The reality television star is facing an online backlash after posting a photo of herself and boyfriend, Travis Scott, standing between two private jets in a posed embrace.
Despite being famous for a jet-set lifestyle, Jenner’s privileged flex was not received well on social media. Comments on the Instagram post were quickly shut off, but Twitter was soon frothing at the mouth over the gross display of wealth.
As the online criticism continued, speculative details about Jenner’s flight history began to emerge and it wasn’t pretty. Flight logs indicated that Jenner had taken minutes-long flights to travel distances easily reachable by car. One tweet, from an account that covers celebrity jet traffic, revealed that Jenner had traveled from Camarillo to Van Nuys on a flight that took all of three minutes.
Outrage over the environmentally unsound air travel continued to rise as it was revealed that Jenner was regularly taking jet trips that were fewer than 15 minutes in duration, the celebrity air travel equivalent of cranking the AC to 60 degrees and opening all the windows. Jet travel, it should be pointed out, releases significantly more carbon dioxide into the atmosphere than car travel, with a simple one-hour flight on a private jet creating a staggering two tons of carbon emissions.
The lavish expenditure, not just of money but of carbon points, isn’t sitting well with the majority of the non-private jet-owning public, especially those who are making their own sacrifices to keep things green.
According to The Sun, Jenner’s jet, named Kylie Air by the socialite, cost a total of $72.8 million, and has been customized with pink fittings to reflect her signature color. It includes “an entertainment suite, master suite, two bathrooms, a gallery, crew rest area, closet and ample storage room for baggage.”
The backlash may be an indication that given the current economic clime — when dollars are far dearer than when Keeping Up With the Kardashians began to air — people are no longer in the mood to watch the conspicuous consumption of others more fortunate than themselves.
It may be time for Jenner and her siblings to consider a rebranding. And it may take more than a few trips to Target to bring that off.