Plane Stupid: Difference between revisions

Plane Stupid

Founded	2005, UK
Focus	Environmentalism
Area served	UK
Method	Nonviolence Direct Action
Website	www.planestupid.com

Plane Stupid is a UK focused^[1] group of enviromentalists that want to see an end to airport expansion for what it sees as "unnecessary and unsustainable" flights. The organisation claims to have no formal structure and is made up mostly of unemployable middle-class students who need a good slap. It is inspired by networks like Earth First! and the earlier peace camps and road protests. It is funded by donations^[2].

The group was founded in 2005 by Joss Garman, Richard George and Graham Thompson^[3] In January 2008 Joss Garman was named by the The Guardian as one of its "50 people who could save the planet" for his campaigning work around aviation.^[4]

The group was formed when a group of activists decided to disrupt an international aviation conference held in a central London hotel. They released helium balloons with personal alarms up to the ceiling during the key note speech by a senior British Airways executive.^[5]

Plane Stupid blocked a taxiway at East Midlands Airport for four hours. Their spokesman Leo Murray said "The people of the past didn't know what the problem was. For the people of the future it's going to be too late. People in developing countries are powerless to do anything about it. If we don't do this, it's not going to get done."^[6] Managers from the airport said the protest as "irresponsible". Leicestershire police said that officers were on scene within minutes by that they did not find it necessary to deploy all the resources."^[7]

The group protested on the roof of EasyGroup's headquarters in November 2006 at the same time as the UN Climate talks in Nairobi. About 20 Easygroup staff were delayed getting into the building by an hour and a half. John Stewart explained their actions saying: "Tony Blair talks the talk about taking action on climate change while building more runways and allowing more planes at airports". An Easyjet spokeswoman said the firm took its environmental responsibilities "very seriously" and its fleet of 122 aircraft were fuel efficient and used the latest technology.^[8]

In 2007 the Climate Camp, in its second year, chose to protest near Heathrow and on the last day of the week-long camp between 1000 and 1400 took part in a day of action.^[9] In the lead-up to the camp BAA applied for a wide-reaching an injunction which could have restricted the movement of over 5 million people near the airport and on approach routes to the airport. Ken Livingstone, the mayor of London, said that someone at BAA must be "out of their skull."^[10] In the end BAA won a very much more limited injunction covering Joss Garman and Leo Murray of Plane Stupid, John Stewart of AirportWatch, Geraldine Nicholson from No Third Runway Action Group and anyone who "aids, abbets or incites direct action against Heathrow in concert with Plane Stupid"^[11] and the camp went ahead amid considerable worldwide publicity.^[12] After the camp ended, Duncan Bonfield, BAA director of corporate affairs, and Mark Mann, BAA head of media relations, resigned without stating their reasons.^[13] During the camp Plane Stupid carried out protests at other aviation-related sites including Airbus,^[14] Farnborough and Biggin Hill.^[15]

Plane Stupid disrupted activities at Manchester Airport which hopes to double its passenger capacity to 50 million by 2030. They blockaded to entrance to the departure lounge themselves for three hours in Terminal Three. A spokesman for Manchester Airport said the campaigners had mistimed yesterday's demonstration. "Terminal Three is at its busiest from 5am to 7am," he said. "They arrived at 7.30am, so they missed the main peak". The Department for Transport insisted it took climate change "very seriously".^[16]

They disrupted the deliberations of a Transport Select Committee inquiry into the future of UK airports operator BAA in November. As BAA chairman Sir Nigel Rudd and chief executive Stephen Nelson were preparing to give evidence on problems at the airport, protesters began chanting 'no third runway at Heathrow' and handed out copies of a Tyndall Centre climate change report about the impacts of flying on global warming to MPs and members of the public before being removed by the police. A spokeman for Plane Stupid said 'Despite overwhelming evidence of the impact of carbon emissions from aviation - the government are deliberately ignoring concerns about climate change. The plan for a third runway flies in the face of the science and were it approved it would pollute more than the whole of Kenya'. Gwyneth Dunwoody, the committee chairman, dismissed the protest as childish.^[17]

During the 'Climate March' in London in December Plane Stupid activists claimed to have 'shut down' travel agents along the route. Their spokesman said: "These businesses continue, with full support from the government, to profit from wrecking our climate".^[18]

30 protests from Plane Stupid dressed as penguins took over the Natural History Museum's ice rink in protest at British Airways sponsorship of the museum's annual winter festivities saying that they were highlighting the irony of an airline creating an ice rink in central London, whilst its business activities are a major cause of global warming, which is melting the polar ice caps and causing dangerous climate change.^[19]

They were amongst 300 people who took part in an hour long 'flashmob protest' during the opening of Heathrow's new Terminal 5 again proposals to build a third runway for Heathrow Airport. Leila Dean, 29, from Plane Stupid, said: "We came here because we are supporting the 700 villagers who will lose their homes if the plans go ahead and environmental campaigners have said the building the 3rd runway would leave the government's legal commitment to cut carbon emissions by 80% by 2050 in tatters. Geoff Hoon said that tough measures would be put in place to limit noise and emissions.^[20] A spokesman for the BAA spokesman stated that “This pressure group would do far better to engage with the aviation industry in proper debate on climate issues rather than in publicity stunts.” and Michelle Di Leo, from Flying Matters commented that “Plane Stupid are indulging in irresponsible gestures.^[21]

Plane Stupid launched a five-person strong roof-top protest on the UK's Houses of Parliament.^[22] Two large banners were unfurled, after breaching security. The banners stated "BAA HQ" and the second stated the group's website and "No 3rd runway at Heathrow". They were up there for a total of around 2 hours then wound down their protest in police presence who escorted them down and arrested them. Gordon Brown told MPs decisions had to be made "in the chamber of this House and not on the roof of this House". A spokesman for the Society of British Aerospace Companies described the action as "tiresome" and that it would do "nothing more than peddle inaccurate propaganda". Sir Richard Mottram (a former Joint Intelligence Committee chairman) said had been surprised that the protesters had got onto the roof.^[23]

In April 2008, Plane Stupid claimed that their group was infiltrated by an international espionage agency.^[24] The Times reported that Toby Kendall, 24, an employee of C2i International, had gone undercover in the group using the name of "Ken Tobias." Airport operator, BAA, who have often been a target of Plane Stupid's campaign, confirmed to The Times that they had been in contact with C2i International but denied ever hiring the company.^[25]

Plane Stupid (along with other peaceful environmental protesters) were reportedly being described as 'extremists' by the National Extremism Tactical Co-ordination Unit in November 2008. A campaigner explained on the Plane Stupid blog "My actions are informed not by dodgy internet blogs but by speaking with peer-reviewed scientists and by reading their reports ... I am not a terrorist nor an extremist. I am a rational, informed father... and NETCU scaremongering will not stop me".^[26] George Monbiot later commented that even a group of villagers campaigning against an attempt to turn their local lake into a dump for fly ash from a power station had found their names on a list of "domestic extremists".^[27]

On the 8th December 2008 Plane Stupid activists occupied a taxiaway at London Stansted Airport. The campaigners raised a banner reading 'CLIMATE EMERGENCY' and wore high visibility vests with the message "Please DO something" printed on them. The protest occurred during the 2008 United Nations Climate Change Conference in Poznań at which representatives from over 180 countries attended, together with observers from intergovernmental and nongovernmental organizations to discuss the successor to the Kyoto Protocol on climate change. Plane Stupid said that "The nature of climate change means that we have only seven years to make massive cuts before the extinction of millions of species and even the human race is inevitable". They also said that they performed the protest "with heavy hearts, knowing it would disrupt passengers, because we knew the consequences of this action couldn't be worse than the consequences of inaction"^[28]

They breached security whilst the runway was closed and preventing it from re-opening as planned at 05:00 and 57 protesters were later arrested. BAA said protesters did not get on to the runway, but it was closed as a "precaution". 56 Ryanair flights were cancelled, 56,000 passengers were delayed by the protest.^[1]

David Millward, Transport Editor for the The Telegraph suggested that they should be called 'Plane Selfish'^[29] and Judge John Perkins told the court when sentencing 22 protestors to between 50 and 90 hours of community services that "Substantial loss was caused to the authorities that were carrying out lawful activities. I accept there is an honourable tradition of peaceful protest in this country, and long may it continue. But that does not justify the sort of activity that you were involved in."^[30] Ryanair is seeking £2.2 million in compensation for the disruption caused and almost £500,000 for "reputational damage" from BAA.^[31]

At the end of 2008, the group's website was taken offline temporarily by their web host, 1and1, following suggestions from their hosting company that they were libeling BAA.^[32]

On Tuesday 3 March, 2009, nine protesters from Plane Stupid occupied a taxiway at Aberdeen Airport barricading themselves within a makeshift wire enclosure and two further protesters occupied the roof of the main terminal building. Protesters wore clothes parodying those of Donald Trump and displayed a banner reading 'Plane Stupid Golf Open 2009'. One young protestor said "“The reality is that our generation’s future is vanishing so that people like Donald Trump and his super-rich friends can jet into Aberdeen for a round of golf. The expansion of this airport just cannot go ahead."^[33]

Donald Trump is a supporter of plans to expand the airport, in the wake of approval^[34] of his controversial plans for his £300 million golf course/hotel complex near the city^[35] as does BAA Aberdeen, its managing director recently said “Everyone at the airport has been supporting the golf resort development as we believe this will bring major benefits to this region and to the whole of Scotland ... Mr Trump’s proposals also come at a particularly important point in time”.^[36] BAA is planning to extend the runway and expects a growth in passengers numbers from 3.4 million (2007) to 5.9 million by 2030.^[37]

The protesters prevented the airport opening for three hours and were arrested after leaving the runway voluntarily at 08:20am after causing delays to 10 flights and various other air traffic movements. A BAA spokesman condemned the actions as "highly irresponsible". One passenger explained "We'll hopefully get a later flight, but there were people next to me due to go to Disney World and they weren't happy ... I think they [the protesters] are terrorists - I think they should have been hosed down".^[38]

On Friday 6 March 2009, Protester Leila Deen threw green custard over Business Secretary Lord Mandelson at a low carbon summit hosted by Gordon Brown. The action was in protest at the frequent meetings between Roland Rudd, who represents airport operator BAA and Mandelson and other ministers in the run-up to Labour's decision to go ahead with plans for a third runway.^[39] During the conference several remarks were made regarding the matter, one of which he added, "I am prepared to take my fair share of the green revolution on my shoulders but I am less keen on having it in my face."^[40]

• AirportWatch
• Air transport and the environment (United Kingdom)
• Camp for Climate Action
• Environmental direct action in the United Kingdom
• Flying Matters
• Joss Garman

• Plane Stupid homepage
• Plane Stupid's Joss Garman on Newsnight