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Heathrow airport disrupted as climate activists protest on northern runway Heathrow airport disrupted as climate activists protest on northern runway
(about 1 hour later)
Climate change activists have got onto the north runway at Heathrow airport to launch a protest. Climate change activists have chained themselves together on the northern runway at Heathrow, with the airport warning of delays and possible cancellations for passengers.
A spokesman for direct action group Plane Stupid said a dozen demonstrators cut through a fence and entered the runway at 3.30am. A dozen demonstrators from direct action group Plane Stupid cut through a perimeter fence and entered the northern runway at 3.30am. Activists wore armlocks and lay on the runway.
He said the protesters were campaigning against airport expansion and would stay on the runway for as long as possible. A spokesman said the protesters – one dressed as a polar bear – were campaigning against runway expansion and would stay for as long as possible.
Still smiling on the runway. Happy to be taking action on airport expansion and climate change. #NoThirdRunway pic.twitter.com/4AiQvoPeJKStill smiling on the runway. Happy to be taking action on airport expansion and climate change. #NoThirdRunway pic.twitter.com/4AiQvoPeJK
A Heathrow airport spokesman said: “A group of people have breached the airport perimeter fence and are currently staging a protest on the northern runway. 3 double sets of arm locks at the base of tripod in the middle of the runway at #heathrow #keepitontheground pic.twitter.com/Tr6AKPpgbt
“We are working closely with the police who are dealing with the incident. The southern runway remains open. Our priority remains to ensure the safety of the airport community, including passengers, employees and protesters.” A spokesman for Heathrow warned there would be delays and customers should check the status of their flight. Both runways are operational but the northern runway is shorter than normal and can only accept shorthaul flights, he said.
A video posted online appeared to show several activists chained together and being spoken to by a police officer. “We are working closely with the police who are dealing with the incident. The southern runway remains open,” a statement from the airport said. “Our priority remains to ensure the safety of the airport community, including passengers, employees and protesters.”
The officer told them: “As a consequence of you being here, you are causing severe disruption and it will be in the millions of pounds because it will take us a while to remove you. A Metropolitan police spokesman said: “At approximately 3.45am officers were alerted to a number of protesters who had made their way airside at Heathrow airport. A small number of these protesters are believed to have chained themselves to a ‘tripod’. Officers are in attendance.”
Four hours after the activists first arrived, police had managed to remove three of them from the arm locks.
First activist taken away at #heathrow sending a clear message we want #NoThirdRunway #noifsnobuts pic.twitter.com/5ZPqL8jRGX
Second activist taken off now #NoThirdRunway third being cut pic.twitter.com/TyhqxTXZkw
Yep, still going on this one... #keepitontheground pic.twitter.com/voFhgDKtso
A video posted online from earlier in the protest appeared to show several activists chained together and being spoken to by a police officer. The officer told them: “As a consequence of you being here, you are causing severe disruption and it will be in the millions of pounds because it will take us a while to remove you.
“The cost will be in the couple of millions. The airport will attempt to make a civil recovery.”“The cost will be in the couple of millions. The airport will attempt to make a civil recovery.”
He added: “There are international flights now being diverted.” The officer told the group international flights were being diverted though an airport spokesman said none had been so far.
Earlier this month a long-awaited report recommended that a new runway should be built at Heathrow rather than Gatwick. Sarah Shoraka of Plane Stupid said the group had re-formed since the publication this month of a long-awaited report that recommended a new runway should be built at Heathrow rather than Gatwick.
After three years of investigation, the Airports Commission said Heathrow was best placed to provide “urgently required” capacity, but environmentalists warned that building a new runway there would make it harder to reduce air pollution and climate change emissions. After three years of investigation, the Airports Commission said Heathrow was best placed to provide “urgently required” capacity.
“We thought we’d won this fight, because David Cameron said ‘no ifs, no buts’ there would be no runway at Heathrow,” Shoraka told the Guardian. “We thought it was off the table and then the report came through and we thought ‘we’re going to have to fight this all over again’.”
She insisted the activists had not endangered flights. “We picked the spot so we wouldn’t endanger flights trying to land. But we are not big corporations, we are not Boris Johnson, we don’t have resources at our disposal other than our bodies.
“We need to insert climate change into the narrative, it’s been absent from the whole debate ever since the report came out.”
Plane Stupid would stage more demonstrations on the issue, she added. “There is a huge coalition of groups against this and we have to stop this again.”