WhatsApp groups for taxis in the sky: How F1 drivers travel

Private jet of Kim Kardashian in Hamburg — Photo: © IMAGO

F1 News & Gossip

WhatsApp groups for taxis in the sky: How F1 drivers travel

Many drivers live in Monaco

Sam Cook Digital Journalist

Sports Journalist who has been covering motorsport since 2023

Tuesday 24 March 2026 13:53

Ever imagined how rich people carpool? Well, a former F1 star might just have given us the answer.

Travel to and from F1 race weekends has been under the microscope in recent times, with F1's carbon neutrality target by 2030 including travel for drivers and team personnel.

Indeed, Lewis Hamilton sold his private jet back in 2019, in an attempt to reduce his carbon footprint and align his lifestyle with more environmentally-friendly values.

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But following the Chinese Grand Prix weekend, Hamilton was seen travelling on his former Mercedes boss Toto Wolff's private jet alongside Kimi Antonelli, Valtteri Bottas, George Russell and Susie Wolff, while Gabriel Bortoleto has been known to regularly catch lifts from both four-time world champion Max Verstappen and Fernando Alonso.

And now former F1 star David Coulthard has revealed how it is decided which drivers will go on whose private jet, with only very few stars actually having their own private jet.

"We're on a group here because a number of the drivers old and new live in the south of France, or more specifically Monte Carlo," Coulthard said on the Up to Speed podcast.

"So we have a WhatsApp group to figure out who's going where. Max has his own aircraft, Toto has his own aircraft, Fernando in Europe. And then the rest just group together and pay your way, and sometimes it's actually a lot more efficient than doing two flights in Europe to get somewhere, you can just buzz straight in on a private.

"We all pay our way," he said when asked about who pays for fuel. "That's the only fair way."

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What jets do F1 stars choose?

Verstappen's choice of jet is a Dassault Falcon 8X.

This private jet has a range of 12,000km, and does not need fuel stops, making it possible to do long-haul direct flights such as Singapore to Monaco, or Las Vegas to Paris.

This allows the Dutchman to navigate the lengthy F1 seasons with the maximum amount of recovery time in between races.

Wolff, meanwhile, utilises a Bombardier Global 6500 which is said to be designed for both comfort and efficiency.

Verstappen's jet is believed to be worth around $50million, while Wolff's Bombardier Global 6500 is priced anywhere between $41milliion-$58million.

Why do many F1 drivers choose to live in Monaco?

There is one standout reason why a lot of current and past F1 drivers decide to live in the principality of Monte Carlo, and that is because of its zero-tax policy.

The central location for many F1 stars means that the sharing of lifts to and from race weekends is easier to organise.

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F1 Max Verstappen Lewis Hamilton Toto Wolff Fernando Alonso Chinese Grand Prix