An Air France 777 has just been vandalized by Greenpeace at Charles de Gaulle Airport.
Greenpeace “paints” Air France 777 green
Today a group of Greenpeace protestors spray painted an Air France 777 green at Charles de Gaulle Airport. It’s not known how exactly they managed to bypass security and get onto the tarmac (but that seems like a safety concern, and someone should be held accountable), but they did manage to do so. They spent quite a while spray painting the plane, wearing white suits that said “greenwashing in progress.”
The plane that was spray painted was an Air France 777-200ER with the registration code F-GSPB. The plane was delivered to the airline in 1998, and hasn’t flown for nearly a year. The last flight for this plane was on March 17, 2020, from Rio de Janeiro to Paris.
For those of you not familiar with Greenpeace, it’s a non-governmental environmental organization that describes itself as using “non-violent creative action to pave the way towards a greener, more peaceful world, and to confront the systems that threaten our environment.”
What was Greenpeace’s motive?
Greenpeace is angry because the organization believes a significant reduction in air traffic is needed to address climate change. Here’s how Greenpeace’s website describes its actions and stance:
This morning, Greenpeace activists entered the tarmac at Roissy-Charles de Gaulle airport to denounce the government’s greenwashing on the air. Faced with the climate crisis, it is necessary to regulate and reduce air traffic so that it is compatible with the Paris Agreement, while anticipating the reconversion of this sector and the social consequences that this would have for all workers. and affected workers.
A few days before the start of parliamentary debates on the “Climate and Resilience” bill, we would like to firmly remind you that the technological innovations so much praised by the Minister for Transport, Jean-Baptiste Djebbari, will not be enough to stem the climate crisis. The regulation and reduction of air traffic are essential.
Specifically, Greenpeace argues the following:
- All airport expansion projects in France need to be stopped
- Flights should be banned for markets that have train service that takes less than 6hr; previously the government had agreed to a policy like this for train rides of up to 2hr30min
- More money needs to be invested into train service, so that it’s available in even more markets
- Airlines shouldn’t be able to get out of their environmental obligations through carbon offsetting, but rather they need to reduce emissions significantly, and this can’t just come through getting more fuel efficient planes
If you’re wondering how politicians are taking this feedback, it seems like the answer is “not very well.” Greenpeace France Tweeted at French Transport Minister Jean-Baptiste Djebbari, saying the following:
“So with all these elements @Djebbari_JB: when do you really start reducing air traffic, to bring the sector into line with the climate emergency?”
Djebbari simply responded to that Tweet by saying:
“Criminal proceedings?”
Bottom line
Greenpeace managed to break into the secure area of Charles de Gaulle Airport and spray paint an Air France 777 green, as part of an environmental protest. The organization is doing this a few days before France’s government discusses a climate bill.
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