Story ID: 
Anti-aviation Protesters Target London City Airport
By: AIN Staff
Caption: Four men and one woman aligned with Plane Stupid, an activist group opposed to airport expansion in Europe, cut through the chain-link perimeter fence on t
Word Count: 181
Four men and one woman aligned with Plane Stupid, an activist group opposed to airport expansion in Europe, cut through the chain-link perimeter fence on the western side of England’s London City Airport on Wednesday at 2:30 a.m. They quickly covered the short distance to the closest airplane, a Beechjet 400A parked in front of the Jet Centre FBO, and attached themselves to the nosewheel using rubber-covered chains. “Airport security was immediately alerted by alarm when the fence was cut and called the police,” said Jet Centre spokeswoman Rupa Haria. “The police arrived on site at 2:34 a.m.” The airplane, which Haria said was out of service for maintenance and parked out of the way, was not damaged. After releasing the protesters from their self-imposed bondage, the police arrested them at 7:54 a.m. on charges of aggravated trespass and criminal damage. The incident did not disrupt any of the airport’s flight operations, said Haria, and the first scheduled commercial flight took off on time at 6:55 a.m. “Security at London City Airport more than meets international requirements,” she said.