Protesters have sprayed jets at Stansted Airport hours after Taylor Swift landed in London ahead of her sold out Eras Tour performances this weekend. Just Stop Oil have posted on X saying two protesters, Jennifer Kowalski and Cole Macdonald, cut the fence into the private airfield at Stansted where the pop star’s jet is parked at around 5am this morning.
The two Just Stop Oil members then proceeded to spray paint two private jets orange, the protest group’s signature colour. According to Just Stop Oil, Kowalski and Macdonald used fire extinguishers filled with the orange paint to mark the jets.
The two protesters claim this was in protest against the very rich, who are “able to fly in private jets”, unlike millions living in “unliveable conditions”. Macdonald, 22, from Brighton, said: “We’re living in two worlds: one where billionaires live in luxury, able to fly in private jets away from the other, where unlivable conditions are being imposed on countless millions.
READ MORE: Tower Hamlets shooting in early morning as suspects in BMW arrested
“Meanwhile, this system that is allowing extreme wealth to be accrued by a few, to the detriment of everyone else, is destroying the conditions necessary to support human life in a rapidly accelerating never-ending ‘cruel summer’. Billionaires are not untouchable, climate breakdown will affect every single one of us.”
Photos show the two protesters sitting and standing in front of one of the planes, with Kowalski, 28 holding a fire extinguisher. The former sustainability manager from Dumbarton said: “Over the years, I’ve had to realise that even working in sustainability provides me with essentially no ability to make the necessary changes to prevent the complete collapse of our natural systems. I have to take desperate measures to make my voice heard.
In 2024 we all have to be considering what we can do each day to change the course our society is on. We need an emergency treaty to stop the extraction and burning of oil, gas and coal by 2030.”
Taylor Swift owns one private jet, but according to the Liverpool Echo, it’s a $53 million private jet with a kitchen and walk-in shower. Swift currently owns a Dassault 7X model, but did also own a Dassault Falcon 900 which she sold on January 30 of this year, the Mirror reports.
The Dassault Falcon 900 had a list price of $44million (£38m) when new, with Swift’s version boasting a kitchen, a bathroom with a shower and a bedroom. Last year, Swift flew in her jets 170 times, with a number of trips back and forth to watch boyfriend Travis Kelce play his football games with his team the Kansas City Chiefs.
However Swift has previously been slammed for using private jets in the past after she topped a list of celebrities with the most private jet carbon emissions in 2022. A spokesperson for Swift told the Mirror that she purchased carbon credits to offset the usage of her jets. Swift has tried to limit the information available about her flights in the past by, using the FAA’s privacy ICAO aircraft address program, also known as PIA.
Got a story for us? Email [email protected].
Get the biggest stories from around London straight to your inbox. Sign up to MyLondon’s The 12 HERE for the 12 biggest stories each day.
