Article by Nick Evans, courtesy of the Australian.
22.10.2025
It cost Atlassian shareholders about $5.7m last year to fly climate evangelist Mike Cannon-Brookes around the world on his own private aircraft. Poor bugger is even losing money on the deal.
Such are the costs of being rich and famous, we suppose. Atlassian’s partnership with Formula 1 racing team Williams means Cannon-Brookes just has to burn all that jet fuel to go to the Grand Prix, doesn’t it? Or he risks being seen as lacking faith in his own team.
And he’s done plenty of travel, according to Atlassian’s latest proxy statements to the US markets.
The global software giant reimbursed Cannon-Brookes $US1.9m for travel in his luxury $75m Bombardier 7500 in the company’s last fiscal year.
That’s until he certified the aircraft as a charter vehicle last November, and presumably listed himself on whatever version of Uber that rich people use.
Atlassian handed over another $US1.8m for the remainder of the year in renting the Bombardier when its founder needed the plane for business use.
Cannon-Brookes, as the plane’s owner, received “substantially all of the fees” for those charter flights.
But, fear not, Atlassian shareholders, he’s not rorting the system.
Not only has the bearded climate warrior never had to reimburse the company for ferrying around friends and family on the jet on private use, he certainly doesn’t profit from the rental.
“Due to the fact that the predetermined rate we pay for the use of the private aircraft is less than the actual operational costs incurred, Mr Cannon-Brookes does not profit from this arrangement,” the company told its shareholders.
“The arrangements allow for significant benefits in terms of safety, security, efficiency, privacy, confidentiality, flexibility, and productivity for Mr Cannon-Brookes’ role as CEO.”
And it’s value for money, it really is. Seriously. If Atlassian bought the jet, or rented one from a charter company that wasn’t run by its founder, it would cost the company far more.
“We believe the amounts we pay pursuant to this arrangement are reasonable, necessary, appropriate, and for the benefit of us and our stockholders, particularly in light of their business purpose and the fact that Mr Cannon-Brookes receives only a nominal salary and does not receive any bonus payments, equity awards or other incentive compensation,” the company says.
When The Australian took a close look at his flight records a few months ago, Cannon-Brookes’ plane had already racked up enough air miles to get him to the moon and part of the way back.
That’s a lot of flight time for a man who has “deep internal conflict” about even owning one. And the luxury jet is also subject to an “extremely rigorous carbon regime” for its use, which Cannon-Brookes claims means the flights have a net negative carbon footprint.
Not as negative as it could be without trips to watch the Grand Prix events in the UK, Montreal and Miami – or, most recently, to Austin, to unveil Williams’ “heritage livery”.
And he still does fly commercial occasionally. Once, at least, after The Australian started poking around in the Bombardier’s flight records.
To be fair to Atlassian, though, at least the company is prepared to tell shareholders how much it spends flying Cannon-Brookes around the world on his own jet.
Unlike, for example, Fortescue, which owns the Bombardier 7500 used by chairman Andrew Forrest in his global campaign against carbon emissions, but doesn’t bother to break out its cost to shareholders.
