Taylor Swift quietly makes a big sale amid the swirling private jet controversy
New York, New York - Taylor Swift has offloaded a big expense – and public relations headache – as federal records show the pop superstar parted ways with one of her private jets last month.
According to Federal Aviation Authority data compiled by Business Insider, Swift's Dassault Falcon 900 was sold on January 30 amid criticism about her carbon footprint and potential legal action regarding a flight-tracking social media account.
SATA LLC, a holding company that shares the same business address as Taylor Swift Productions in Nashville, Tennessee, reportedly acquired the two-pilot aircraft in 2009, but the jet is now registered to a company based in Missouri.
Financial terms of the sale were not made available but, according to Business Jet Traveler, a brand-new Dassault 900 is listed at $44 million.
After the recent transaction, Swift reportedly now owns one private jet, a Dassault Falcon 7X, which seats up to 16 passengers and has a nautical range of around 5,800 miles.
Florida student responds to Taylor Swift's legal action
The 14-time Grammy winner's air travel have been a hot button issue as of late.
Earlier this week, attorneys for Swift threatened legal action against a Florida college student who has been tracking the private jets of celebrities and other high-profile figures – most notoriously, Elon Musk – posting publicly available information about takeoffs and landings on social media.
Jack Sweeney confirmed to the Washington Post that he received a cease-and-desist letter from Swift's legal team in December likening his online activities to "stalking and harassing behavior."
"This information is already out there," he said in response. "Her team thinks they can control the world."
Swift, who's expected to fly private from a concert in Tokyo to watch boyfriend Travis Kelce play in the Super Bowl on Sunday, has also been criticized by environmental activists for the planet-warming emissions she releases with every flight.
Cover photo: Collage: IMAGO / Pond5 Images & Dimitrios Kambouris / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP