Environmental Campaigners Pledge To Use Drones To Shut Down Heathrow In September
29 August 2019, 08:04
An environmental group have pledged to ground all flights from Heathrow by flying drones near the airport.
The campaign group Heathrow Pause say they will fly toy drones within the restricted zone near the airport from 13th September.
They insist there will be no threat to any planes, the drones will not be in flight paths and will only be flown at 6ft.
In a statement, they said: "We can’t stand aside any longer. As an act of conscience, we have to act.
"From the 13th September, we will exploit a loophole in Heathrow airport's health and safety protocols and fly toy drones within its restricted zone. It is our understanding that the airport’s authorities will respond by grounding all flights. Drones will not be flown in flightpaths and there will be no risk of harm to anyone.
"We know that we will be arrested. We know that we face significant prison sentences for our actions. We have lives, we have families, we do not wish to go to prison. But we are steadfast in our resolve.
"We do this in defence of life. We do it because our consciences leave us no other choice but to act."
Explaining why they are taking the extreme action, they added: "Our Government, along with other governments, have allowed lethal quantities of greenhouse gases to be released into the atmosphere. If they allow more to be released, millions, perhaps billions, of people will face starvation and death.
"There is a real danger of human extinction. There is a real danger of the extinction of every living thing on Earth.
"We face the loss of all we love: our families, our communities, this nation, all life on the planet."
Flights were grounded in December following reports of drone flying near Gatwick airport.
