Apparently, there is a good reason why Drake‘s private plane traveled a very short distance, not once, not twice, but three times last month — at least so he says.

Several celebrities, especially Kylie Jenner, have been in hot water over their brief and unnecessary plane rides as of late. This included the 35-year-old rapper, who was called out surrounding his $185 million private jet usage after the Twitter account CelebJets reported that he took three flights that were under 20 minutes last month. According to the account, his plane – known as “Air Drake” – took off from Hamilton, Ontario, on July 12 to make an 18-minute trip to Toronto. On June 17, the plane then took the same flight — this time only being in the air for 16 minutes. But wait, there is more. The trip was made one more time on June 28, lasting  just 14 minutes. Seriously?! CelebJets reported that each of these flights resulted in about five tons of carbon dioxide emissions!

Related: Kris Jenner Concerned About Kylie’s Spending Habits After Private Jet Backlash!

Oof, so not good.

Considering the environmental toll these short flights can have due to the greenhouse gasses emitted AND how massive the plan is, many climate activists and social media users have slammed the Degrassi alum. Ian Borsuk, a climate campaign coordinator, even told CTV New Toronto:

“I think we need to as a society have a conversation about whether we should be allowing these private flights to be happening in the first place. I think it can really be frustrating for some folks when, you know, they’re thinking to themselves, ‘OK, well, I’m doing everything I can in my daily routine to cut down on greenhouse gas emissions, such as taking public transit, buying local products, and things like that.’”

Now, it looks like Drake is firing back at the criticism and defending his recent short flights. Replying in the comments section of an Instagram post from @realtorontonewz about his jet usage, he wrote:

“This is just them moving planes to whatever airport they are being stored at for anyone who was interested in the logistics…nobody takes that flight.”

But that still does not negate the fact those short trips do so much harm to the planet since they’ve now emitted a ton of CO2 – and some people were quick to point that out, writing on Twitter:

“So @Drake is clarifying that no one is on the plane when it flies from Toronto to Hamilton and it’s just logistics to get the plane in storage…we know, and that’s the problem! Just land in #HamOnt and take the QEW, or get a 407 transponder dude – you’d save so much on fuel.”

“why does drake think the fact no one was on the plane makes this any better? those three 15-minute flights emitted around 15 tons of carbon……”

What do YOU think about the controversy, Perezcious readers? Sound OFF in the comments (below).

[Image via Esquire Middle East/YouTube, WENN]