A typical day at London City Airport took an interesting turn today as a man identified as James Brown, a partially blind Paralympian, managed to glue himself to a plane. And not just any part of the plane: he managed to glue himself to the top of the fuselage.

 

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How Mr. Brown managed to get up onto the top of the fuselage remains a mystery. It would be no easy feat (not to mention entirely unsubtle) to attempt this from a jet bridge. However, it appears that a staircase was used for boarding the small jet, and given the available railing, it’s plausible that he simply hoisted himself up.

The Northern Irishman then delivered a 5-minute lecture on climate change to his cell phone camera. Near the middle of the video he remarks that he doesn’t “know how they are going to get me down.” Maybe you should have thought of that first, James?

Mr. Brown wasn’t the only one at London City Airport today. Others had a far less lofty goal, gluing themselves to the airport floor.

The “Extinction Rebellion”

I was not aware of a movement called the “Extinction Rebellion” until today. But apparently these protests are all part of this larger movement that seeks to catalyze government action on climate change through peaceful civil disobedience.

This is at least the fourth day on ongoing climate change protests in the UK, where passengers were doing their best to disrupt flight operations at the London City Airport. With a goal of shutting down transport systems that we have “come to rely upon”, a number of protesters arrived at the airport to cause delays in any way they could.

The protest is aimed at the climate impact of air travel and the UK government support of airport expansion. Another passenger stood up during the safety demonstration of a different flight to deliver a lecture on climate change.

The London Metropolitan Police have arrested over 800 people so far that are associated with the Extinction Rebellion and climate activism.

Conclusion

I’m not sure what the outcome of Mr. Brown’s stunt will be, but it will likely land him with charges. The police commissioner called the stunt “reckless, stupid and dangerous,” a sentiment with which I have to agree.

What do you think of Mr. Brown’s protest and the “Extinction Rebellion”?