Billionaire Jeff Bezos discussed climate change with Prince Charles on the eve of Cop26

Billionaire Jeff Bezos and his girlfriend Lauren Sanchez met with Britain’s Prince Charles last night on the eve of the Cop26 climate summit in Glasgow, after jetting into Scotland on a $65 million private jet.

The meeting came two days after the Amazon founder was in Turkey celebrating the 66th birthday of fellow-billionaire Bill Gates as the pair vacationed on superyachts.

And despite touting the importance on taking climate action, Bezos arrived in Scotland on Sunday at Prestwick Airport in his $65million Gulfstream plane as part of a 400-strong parade of private jets.

The trio were seen in a photograph shared on Bezos’s social media pages enjoying a cup of tea at Dumfries House, a Scottish country mansion that is a roughly 40 minute journey by car to Glasgow. 

In the photograph, Bezos and Sanchez are shown seated on priceless blue chippendale armchairs surrounded by ornate portraits hanging in the Resplendent Blue Drawing room of the country home, that the Prince of Wales had renovated as part of the Prince’s Trust before reopening it to the public in 2012.

Bezos is shown with a broad smile as the heir to the British crown gestures close to a cup of tea that is perched on top of a small table, while a casual looking Sanchez leans forward, listening intently.

‘The Prince of Wales has been involved in fighting climate change and protecting our beautiful world for five decades — far longer than most,’ Besoz gushed on Twitter and Instagram along with the photograph.

‘We had a chance to discuss these important issues on the eve of #COP26 — looking for solutions to heal our world, and how the @BezosEarthFund can help.’ 

Earlier in the day, Prince Charles delivered a speech in Rome for the G20 summit – which saw the likes of US President Joe Biden, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and French President Emmanuel Macron convene ahead of Cop26 – before also taking a private jet to Glasgow.

Pictured: Billionaire Jeff Bezos (centre) and girlfriend Lauren Sanchez (right) meet with Britain’s Prince Charles (left) last night in Dumfries House’s Blue Drawing Room on the eve of the Cop26 climate summit in Glasgow. ‘The Prince of Wales has been involved in fighting climate change and protecting our beautiful world far longer than most. We had a chance to discuss these important issues on the eve of #COP26 — looking for solutions to heal our world, and how the @BezosEarthFund can help’

Pictured: A picture shared by Jeff Bezos’ girlfriend to Lauren Sanchez to her Instagram in which she can be seen speaking with Prince Charles at Dumfries House. ‘Discussing climate change with the Prince of Wales. The meeting took place at Dumfries House, his lovely home in Scotland,’ Sanchez wrote on Instagram along with the series of photographs

In a separate post, Ms Sanchez shared a series of three other pictures showing Prince Charles walking with Besoz and Sanchez through the mansion.

‘Discussing climate change with the Prince of Wales. The meeting took place at Dumfries House, his lovely home in Scotland,’ she wrote. 

Earlier in the day, she also posted a picture to Instagram of 57-year-old Bezos – worth a reported $177 billion – walking under a tree writing: ‘Arriving in Glasgow for COP26 with the Bezos Earth Fund already had huge meaning for us, as we are working to do our part in bringing action against climate change.

‘I snapped a photo during a brief walk – a reminder of how the natural world is so stunning and beautiful, and that we must do our part to protect it.’ 

The jets arriving in Scotland on Sunday caused extraordinary traffic jam which forced empty planes to fly 30 miles to find space to park. Conservative estimates suggest the fleet jets arriving for COP26 will blast out 13,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide in total.

Other private jets blasted in to Scotland from destinations including Stockholm, Rome, London and Brussels – which are all served by regular commercial routes. The majority of the planes were hired from rental firms, making it difficult to work out who was on board. 

There was so much air traffic that some jets dropped off VIPs at Glasgow Airport and then flew 30 miles to nearby Prestwick due to a shortage of parking. Some also landed in Edinburgh, before presumably travelling by land. 

Pictured: Prince Charles (second-right) is seen talking to Amazon founder Jeff Bezos (right) at Dumfries House along with Lauren Sanchez (left)

Pictured: Billionaire Jeff Bezos and girlfriend Lauren Sanchez tour around Dumfries House, a Scottish mansion, ahead of the Cop26 climate summit set to start in nearby Glasgow today

Amazon airways: Jeff Bezos’ Gulfstream private jet – which reportedly cost him $65 million – arrives at Prestwick Airport near Glasgow on Sunday ahead of the Cop26 climate summit

Pictured: A map showing Mr Bezos’ journeys on Friday in Turkey (bottom-left) and from Turkey to Glasgow on Sunday (main).  The Blue Origin founder is said to have made the 120-mile round trip journey by chopper from Gokova to the resort town of Fethiye on Friday. The jet fuel used to power helicopters emits 21.095 pounds of carbon dioxide per gallon burned. Since helicopters use up approximately 10.75 miles per gallon, Bezos’ helicopter emitted some 215 pounds of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. On Sunday, he then flew the roughly 2,000 miles from Gokova

Bezos and Microsoft founder Gates were slammed as hypocrites for lecturing the world on the need to combat climate change by reducing the carbon footprint, while at the same jet-setting to Turkey and staying on the superyachts – each of which emits around 7,020 tons of carbon dioxide per year, or 19 tons per day.

Bezos, who has pledged $10 billion to his Earth Fun aimed at addressing climate change, reportedly travelled from Gokova to the resort town of Fethiye by private helicopter. The jet fuel used to power helicopters emits 21.095 pounds of carbon dioxide per gallon burned. 

Social media users reacted with fury, noting that Bezos and Gates were contradicting their own statements about the need to tackle climate change.  

The world’s second richest man has also been criticised over the negative environmental impact Amazon has had.

According to CNBC, as of September 2021 the company has completed over 10 billion deliveries since 2014, has over 400,000 drives, 40,000 semi-trucks, 30,000 vans, and a fleet of more than 70 planes.    

In addition to Amazon, Bezos is the founder of Blue Origin – one of the few space companies founded by competing billionaires.

It is understood Bezos and Prince Charles met to discuss Mr Bezos’s charitable body’s commitment to nature ahead of a Cop26 event in Glasgow promoting the Great Green Wall. 

The former richest man in the world transported his guests by helicopter from his €1.8million-a-week rental yacht ‘Lana’ to the Sea Me Beach club in Fethiye

Multi-billionaire and Microsoft founder Bill Gates celebrated his 66th birthday in Turkey in the company of fellow tycoon Jeff Bezos

 

How Bezos’s $65million Gulf Stream lead 400 private jets into COP26 

While green activists at the COP26 climate conference will be urging others to cut down on air travel and eat less meat, billionaires flew in on their own planes on routes already served by commercial airlines.

Amazon founder Jeff Bezos‘ $65million Gulfstream landed in Scotland last night, leading a 400-strong parade of private jets that included royal families and senior delegations from nations around the world.

Conservative estimates suggest the fleet jets arriving for COP26 will blast out 13,000tonnes of carbon dioxide in total – equivalent to the amount consumed by more than 1,600 Britons in a year. 

Bank of America, which in PR documents boasts of its ‘commitment to sustainability’, was the registered owner of two private jets arriving in Scotland. 

Other private jets blasted in to Scotland from destinations including Stockholm, Rome, London and Brussels – which are all served by regular commercial routes. The majority of the planes were hired from rental firms, making it difficult to work out who was on board. 

Private jets are far more polluting than commercial planes, cars or trains, with the typical one belching out two tonnes of carbon dioxide every hour.

A Dassault Falcon 8X belonging to the Monaco royal family arrives in Edinburgh early this morning 

A chartered Boeing 737 belonging to the Abu Dhabi Royal Family spotted landing at Glasgow Airport yesterday afternoon 

The Great Green Wall is an Africa-led initiative supported by French President Emmanuel Macron which aims to combat desertification by creating a stretch of green and productive landscapes across the width of north Africa.

Charles is co-hosting the session alongside the French leader and his Mauritanian counterpart Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz, who is chairman of the Conference of Heads of State and Government of the Pan-African Agency of the Great Green Wall.

The prince was instrumental in bringing Mr Macron and Mr Bezos together on the Great Green Wall.

The Amazon founder created his Bezos Earth Fund with a commitment of 10 billion dollars (£7 billion) to be allocated as grants within a decade to fight climate change and protect the environment. 

The meeting between Prince Charles and Bezos also comes despite the Prince of Wales’ son – Prince William – last month criticising the billionaire space race. 

The Duke of Cambridge, 39, appeared to rebuke the competition – which has seen Blue Origin challenge Elon Musk’s SpaceX and Richard Branson’s Virgin Galactic to make innovations to the viability of space-travel – as he spoke about the current issues facing the climate during an interview with the BBC.

‘We need some of the world’s greatest brains and minds fixed on trying to repair this planet, not trying to find the next place to go and live,’ Prince William said.

The royal also warned the Cop26 summit against ‘clever speak, clever words but not enough action’, adding: ‘I think for COP to communicate very clearly and very honestly what the problems are and what the solutions are going to be, is critical.’

He also praised his father, saying Prince Charles had a ‘a really rough ride’ but was ‘well ahead of the curve’ on the environment. 

He said: ‘It’s been a hard road for [my father]. 

‘My grandfather started off helping out WWF (World Wide Fund for Nature) a long time ago with its nature work and biodiversity, and I think that my father’s sort of progressed that on and talked about climate change a lot more, very early on, before anyone else thought it was a topic.

‘So yes, he’s had a really rough ride on that, and I think you know he’s been proven to being well ahead of the curve.’ 

On Sunday, Prince Charles demanded action on climate change as he warned world leaders they have an ‘overwhelming responsibility to generations yet unborn at the G20 summit in Rome on the eve of the Cop26 conference. 

The British royal said the UN climate change conference which opens in Glasgow on Sunday is ‘quite literally’ the ‘last chance saloon’ to save the planet. 

Charles, who was invited to speak by Italy‘s prime minister, Mario Draghi, will also deliver the opening address at Cop26.

Whilst recognising that urgent action on climate change is crucial, the prince told G20 leaders in Rome: ‘I am, at last, sensing a change in attitudes and the build-up of positive momentum.’

The heir to the throne emphasised that the world leaders have an ‘overwhelming responsibility to generations yet unborn’.

He told the G20 politicians: ‘It is impossible not to hear the despairing voices of young people who see you as the stewards of the planet, holding the viability of their future in your hands’. 

Prince William criticised the race to leave Earth during an interview with the BBC. ‘We need some of the world’s greatest brains and minds fixed on trying to repair this planet, not trying to find the next place to go and live,’ Prince William said

Prince Charles told G20 leaders in Rome earlier on Sunday that the UN climate change conference – which officially opened in Glasgow on Sunday – is ‘quite literally’ the ‘last chance saloon’ to save the planet

Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin announces plans for a private space station

Blue Origin is partnering with several aerospace firms to build a private space station, the Jeff Bezos-founded company announced on Monday.

Orbital Reef, described in a release as a ‘mixed use business park’ in space,’ is expected to ready to be released into low Earth orbit by 2030, right about when NASA is slated to mothball the International Space Station.

The proposed platform is a collaboration between Blue Origin and Sierra Space, a subsidiary of aerospace contractor Sierra Nevada Corporation, with additional technology from Boeing, Redwire Space and Genesis Engineering Solutions. 

‘The station will open the next chapter of human space exploration and development by facilitating the growth of a vibrant ecosystem and business model for the future,’ according to the release.

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Blue Origin has announced Orbital Reef, a private-sector space station its developing with  Sierra Space, a subsidiary of aerospace contractor Sierra Nevada Corporation. Additional resources for the platform, slated to be operation by the end of the decade, will come from Boeing, Redwire Space and Genesis Engineering Solutions

Bezos has been looking into building a space station for over a year, according to CNBC, and Blue Origin has posted job listings for an vaguely named ‘Orbital Destinations’ team earlier this month.  

‘For over sixty years, NASA and other space agencies have developed orbital space flight and space habitation, setting us up for commercial business to take off in this decade,’ said Brent Sherwood, Senior Vice President of Blue Origin’s Advanced Development Programs. 

Orbital Reef will have almost as much habitable volume as the International Space Station, though it will have room for people — ten, compared to the ISS’s six. 

‘We will expand access, lower the cost, and provide all the services and amenities needed to normalize space flight,’ Sherwood added. ‘A vibrant business ecosystem will grow in low Earth orbit, generating new discoveries, new products, new entertainments, and global awareness.’  

Blue Origin will produce the station’s utility systems, core modules, and reusable New Glenn launch system while Sierra Space is contributing its Large Integrated Flexible Environment (LIFE) modules. In addition, its Dream Chaser spacecraft will transport cargo and crew to and from the Reef

Blue Origin will produce the station’s utility systems, core modules, and reusable New Glenn launch system, while Nevada-based Sierra Space is contributing its Large Integrated Flexible Environment (LIFE) modules and Dream Chaser spacecraft,.

The vessel, capable of landing on runways worldwide, will transport cargo and crew to and from the Reef.

‘As a former NASA astronaut, I’ve been waiting for the moment where working and living in space is accessible to more people worldwide, and that moment has arrived,’ Sierra Space president Janet Kavandi said in the statement.

In addition to contributing to station operations, maintenance and engineering, Boeing will deliver its Starliner spacecraft to serve as a crew vessel, while Genesis’ Single Person Spacecraft will be used for ‘routine operations and tourist excursions.’

With space for ten, Orbital Reef is aimed at industrial, commercial and academic clients, as well as space tourists

‘Space workers and tourists alike will have safe, comfortable, and quick access outside Orbital Reef,’ said Genesis program manager Brand Griffin.

Redwire Space will focus on manufacturing and developing, payload operations, deployable structures and microgravity operations.

Following the announcement, stocks of Redwire, which went public last month, surged 40 percent to $16.06 before trading was temporarily halted by the New York Stock Exchange, CNBC reported. 

As of 3:30pm Rewire stock was trading at $13.34 a share.

Following the announcement, stocks of Redwire, which went public last month, surged 40 percent to $16.06 before trading was temporarily halted by the New York Stock Exchange

The developers behind the first crewed private-sector platform in low-Earth orbit see it appealing to ‘diverse tenants and visitors,’ according to the release, including academic, commercial and industrial clients and space tourists.

John Mulholland, Boeing’s program manager for the International Space Station said Orbital Reef isn’t intended to duplicate the ISS, ‘but rather goes a step further to fulfill a unique position in low Earth orbit where it can serve a diverse array of companies and host non-specialist crew.’

‘It calls for the same kind of expertise we used to first design and then build the International Space Station and the same skills we employ every day to operate, maintain and sustain the ISS,’ he added.  

Blue Origins CEO Jeff Bezos (above) has reportedly been looking into building a space station for over a year and posted job listings for an vaguely named ‘Orbital Destinations’ team earlier this month.

In March, NASA announced plans to ensure continuous human presence in low-Earth orbit after the ISS was decommissioned through the Commercial Low-Earth Orbit (LEO) Destination (CLD) project.

Orbital Reef is the second private-sector platform announcement in as many weeks: On Thursday, Lockheed Martin shared plans for a space station in collaboration with Voyager Space.

Lockheed Martin plans to develop a space station in collaboration with Voyager Space. Known as Starlab, the continuously crewed commercial platform is expected to be operational by 2027

Known as Starlab, the continuously crewed commercial platform is expected to be operational by 2027.

In February, NASA awarded Private spaceflight specialist Axiom Space $140 million to build modules that will connect to the ISS, CNBC reported.

When the ISS retires, Axiom’s modules would detach and turn it into a standalone space station.

While SpaceX has shuttled crew and cargo to the ISS, the Elon Musk-led company hasn’t stated any intention to build its own platform.

The space race between Bezos and Musk heated up in April when SpaceX was awarded a $2.9 billion contract by NASA to build a lunar lander, prompting Blue Origin to take the space agency to court, accusing it of improperly vetting bids.