Premier won’t reveal private plane costs after slamming Labor’s ‘high life’

Premier David Crisafulli’s taxpayer-funded jet stayed overnight in Rockhampton in order to fly him back to Brisbane — despite there being 10 commercial flights available to do the same.

Premier David Crisafulli, in Townsville on Tuesday, said his 46.3 hours of flight time between January and March was all accounted for “in the Budget”.

Premier David Crisafulli’s taxpayer-funded jet stayed overnight in Rockhampton in order to fly him back to Brisbane — despite there being 10 commercial flights available to do the same.

Mr Crisafulli on Tuesday crisscrossed Queensland on a chartered Cessna Citation, just after The Courier-Mail exclusively revealed he was the state’s most prolific jetsetting Premier in the last decade.

His office, for the second day in a row, did not provide the Premier’s flight details or charter costs. Instead they referred questions to Queensland Police, which operate the state’s jet fleet.

The LNP, when in Opposition, had repeatedly attacked Labor for “living the high life” and wasting resources “for its jet use during a cost-of-living crisis.

Mr Crisafulli, in Townsville on Tuesday, said his 46.3 hours of flight time between January and March was all accounted for “in the Budget”.

“It’s an arrangement,” he said.

The 2025-26 Budget shows a total $1.2m funded towards Queensland’s aviation capability system within Queensland Police, but does not reveal a break down of operational costs for government aircraft.

David Crisafulli, in Townsville on Tuesday.

“I love this stuff, and I love listening to people where they live,” Mr Crisafulli said.

“I was on the Gold Coast last night (Monday) and this morning was in Townsville now Maryborough. Can’t wait to get to Rocky tonight.”

Ministerial flight time data shows the new government has racked up more than 80 hours of taxpayer-funded private plane time since the October 2024 election — 61.8 of those hours attributed to Mr Crisafulli.

Comparatively, even at the height of his jet use between October 2023 and March 2024 Mr Miles’ recorded 53.7 hours of plane time.

Mr Crisafulli on Tuesday flew to Townsville, then Hervey Bay, before driving to Maryborough for a press conference. He then drove back to Hervey Bay before flying to Rockhampton.

In total he spent nearly four hours flying on Tuesday alone.

The Cessna Citation chartered from Sunshine Coast-based MachJet was scheduled to stay in Rockhampton overnight, before returning to Brisbane — with Mr Crisafulli on board — on Wednesday morning.

The Premier often travels in a Cessna Citation jet.

Flight searches show at least 10 available domestic flights available between 10am and 6pm.

A government spokesman said the alternative was flying the jet back empty.

“Only Steven Miles would think paying for a commercial flight while sending back an empty plane is a good use of money, though know he is a fan of paying for two planes to be in the air at the same time,” he said.

Shadow Treasurer Shannon Fentiman said Mr Crisafulli was being evasive and secretive over the jet costs.

“He promised cost of living relief and delivered nothing, at the same time he is jetsetting across Queensland while not being upfront about how much it costs taxpayers,” she said.

“(Premier) David Crisafulli promised to be open and transparent more than 20 times before the election but now he is Premier he is secretive, evasive and a stranger to the truth.”