Younger generations of Belgians are more likely to adapt their flying habits as a result of concerns over climate. Credit: Unsplash

Over a quarter of Belgians have adopted new flying habits as a result of heightened concerns over climate change, with some giving up flying entirely, a new consultancy firm report found.

Out of the 1,500 Belgians aged 17 to 74 surveyed by market consultancy firm WES, 28.4% were found to have changed their flying habits, with residents of Brussels making up the largest swath of those respondents.

Out of those who declared adapting their travelling habits, 10.1% said they no longer travelled by plane.

Just under half (43.7%) of the survey’s respondents said they had not made any changes to their flying habits.

The survey also showed that older respondents (aged 55 to 64) were less likely than younger respondents (18 to 24) to adapt their travelling habits.

Among the changes made by those who modified their flying habits, 31.9% said they did not book flights for travel distances under 1,000 kilometres, while 27.7% said they checked if the airline used environmentally-friendly aircraft.

A total of 21.1% said they now opted for alternative means of transport, while only 12.3% said they were willing to pay CO2 compensation fees when booking a flight.

Gabriela Galindo

The Brussels Times