Passenger deliberately causes flight delay from Porto to Lisbon.
Flight TP1922, scheduled to depart Francisco Sá Carneiro airport for Lisbon at 9am, was delayed until 9:34 am yesterday, following an onboard protest by an environmental activist. The protester, a member of Climáximo, refused to take his seat and refused to allow the plane to depart, arguing that short-haul flights are unnecessarily damaging to the environment.
Upon exiting the plane, the activist called on others to resist what he called "attacks on our lives" and urged them to stop consenting to routine flights. The airline, TAP, referred the matter to the PSP, describing it as a police matter.
According to a representative from the PSP's Porto Metropolitan Command, the activist delayed the flight by 26 minutes before being removed from the aircraft by officers. The activist was identified and released.
In a statement, Climáximo considered the 18 daily flights on the Porto-Lisbon route to be "an act of violence that needs to stop immediately." The activist also called on TAP to take responsibility for the carbon emissions produced by flights and demanded a free, efficient public transportation system for all people, rather than more planes in the sky.
Climáximo has planned a "Stop the planes" protest at Lisbon Airport on June 1st, with a meeting point at 3 pm at Alameda D. Afonso Henriques. The activist group has been vocal in its opposition to short-haul flights, viewing them as a major contributor to the country's pollution and a significant threat to the environment.
According to recent reports, Climáximo is not alone in its efforts to combat the environmental impact of aviation. The group is planning a "popular sit-in" aimed at disrupting peak flight times at Lisbon Airport and demanding systemic changes to reduce emissions and phase out short-haul flights.
The current stance of TAP and other airlines regarding these protests has been to treat them as security and operational issues rather than engaging directly with the protestors' environmental concerns. [Note: The airlines and authorities have not publicly indicated any change to the frequency or operation of daily Porto-Lisbon flights in response to these protests.]
Climáximo views short-haul flights and private jets as absurd and calls for a social transformation led by popular power, not corporations or governments. [Note: No evidence was found indicating that TAP or other airlines have made operational changes or concessions concerning the Porto-Lisbon flights due to climate protests. The response so far has focused on maintaining flight operations and security.]
- The activist, hailing from Climáximo, expressed concern about short-haul flights at Francisco Sá Carneiro airport, arguing they are harmful to the environment.
- Climáximo is planning a "Stop the planes" protest at Lisbon Airport, seeking systemic changes to reduce emissions and phase out short-haul flights.
- The environmental group, Climáximo, has been vocal in its opposition to short-haul flights, viewing them as a major contributor to pollution and a significant threat to the environment.
- In its statement, Climáximo urged TAP to take responsibility for the carbon emissions produced by flights and demanded a free, efficient public transportation system for all people.
- TAP and other airlines, in response to these protests, have primarily treated them as security and operational issues rather than engaging directly with the protestors' environmental concerns.
