Celebrity private jets can still be tracked despite the new rules provided by the FAA. This is the reason
The owner of a private jet can now ask for the confidentiality of their name and address, thanks to a rule issued by the Federal Aviation Administration last week that was signed into law last year. According to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), ownership information will not be publicly available on its website.
The new rules appear to be part of a part of social media accounts that have posted air travel information about celebrities like Elon Musk and Taylor Swift, who have faced criticism in the past for privacy concerns. These accounts also allow people to publish information about the largest carbon criminals in private jet use.
An electronic request form has been provided to owners to make their private jets more private.
However, this may not stop those who operate tracking sites, as previously reported by The Verge, who said they rely on other sources of information for their reporting, not just FAA records.
Private jet privacy: Not much change?
David Gitman, CEO of Monarch Air Group, a private jet charter company based in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, told CNET that the FAA’s new privacy controls will not prevent flight trackers from publishing publicity and actions about prominent people.
“There is no significant change,” Gitman said. “The FAA ruling allows aircraft owners to block ownership information rather than actual tracking of the aircraft. Most aircraft are not owned by individuals, but by companies or trusts.”
Gitman said that because high-profile people are often photographed on planes and set off, the photos end up appearing on social media, it is not difficult to track them.
“Once the plane is connected to a person, it becomes easier to track because nothing changes on that side,” he said.
Gitman said a private charter like him could make tracking of trackers more difficult because different aircraft are used for different customers at different times. However, the overall tracking has not disappeared.
“In my opinion, airplane stalking is a given modern reality, like a dog stalker outside a restaurant,” Gitman said. “Any airplane movement from Taylor Swift to strategic bombers is available online.”
Daniel Findley, associate director of the Institute for Transportation Research and Education at North Carolina State University, said that because crews are not the focus, the FAA's move is unlikely to affect people in their field or other research areas that do flight tracking.
“It's not that important for the vast majority of people who track flights, own or board the plane,” Findlay said.
