For their fourth day of action, activists from the international protest coalition "Extinction Rebellion" have selected London City Airport. Her plan: to paralyze the airport for three days. The "peaceful" blockade of London City Airport will begin on Thursday, the group said on Wednesday.
The airport, located near the city center, announced on its website that it would work closely with the London police to "ensure passenger safety" and "minimize disruption." The airport encourages passengers not to change their travel plans, but to inform themselves about their flights.
In the morning around 10 o'clock the departures board on the airport website show some delays, usually about ten minutes, occasionally also up to three hours. Via Twitter, London City announced that more than 40 flights have landed or landed by 9am:
Good morning everyone, thanks for your patience if you're traveling today as we implement boarding pass checks at the entrance, due to the threat of protester activity. Over 40 flights have arrived or departed so far. We continue to work with @metpoliceuk to minimize disruption.
- London City Airport (@LondonCityAir) October 10, 2019The activists said they wanted to occupy the Hong Kong-style airport terminal at 8:00 am by sitting down, laying, or concatenating themselves in front of the doors to departure and arrival halls. Hundreds of people have confirmed their participation and are "ready to sacrifice their freedom for this purpose," the Alliance said Wednesday.
The activists wanted to band together from various London protests and march together to London City Airport. If they could not carry out their protest inside the airport, they would "block it from outside" by blocking rail routes and car access roads, Extinction Rebellion announced.
Activists: Airport expansion does not meet the climate targets
Of London's five airports, London City Airport is the closest to the city center. Last year, he counted 4.8 million passengers. The operators are planning an expansion of the airport. An Alliance spokesman condemned the project, which was incompatible with the UK government's climate goals.
The Extinction Rebellion activists have been taking to the streets in several countries since Monday. The protests are scheduled to last around two weeks and affect a total of about 60 cities. According to the London police, more than 500 people have been provisionally arrested since the protests began.
In mid-September, activists had already tried to stop air traffic at Heathrow Airport with drones - but to no avail.
