Chittenden County, Vermont Skywatch, 5 Jun 2023

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From YouTube: Skywatch: Ground the F-35s, Private Jets, and Unnecessary Flights

Description

From Skywatch:

Hosts Jimmy Leas and Danaka Katovich interview guest Dan Castrigano, campaigner with Safe Landing BTV.

The movement to ground unnecessary flights is growing. This includes the climate-killing F-35s, private jets, and other unnecessary flights. On May 23rd, more than 30 activists gathered at Patrick Leahy Burlington International Airport to voice these demands. This action was in solidarity with an action on the same day in Geneva, Switzerland, where activists protested at EBACE, the largest private jet sales event in Europe. More than 100 activists were arrested demanding an immediate ban on private jets.

Dan is an educator and community organizer fighting for climate and social justice. Dan is a campaigner with Safe Landing BTV, which demands an immediate ban on private jets and a 50% reduction of emissions at Patricky Leahy International Airport by 2030. You can find Safe Landing BTV at safelandingbtv.org and on social media @safelandingbtv. Dan also campaigns with Flight Free USA and Flight Free Vermont, where folks pledge to fly less, take a flight free year, or quit flying altogether because of the climate crisis. You can pledge to be flight free at flightfree.org.

For more information: www.codepink.org | www.CancelF35.substack.com

6/5/2023

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A

Good evening welcome to Skywatch I am Jimmy Lewis and.

B

I am Danica katavich.

A

We are your co-hosts for today's episode of Skywatch I'm, the founder and a reporter for the independent online news report, cancel f-35.substack.com.

B

And I am the national co-director of the women's LED peace group code pink and I would like to warmly welcome our guest today, Dan castragano.

A

We will be discussing the growing movement to ground the climate, killing f-35s private jets and all the other unnecessary flights.

B

On May 23rd, more than 30 activists gathered at Burlington, International Airport.

A

To voice these demands, the action at the Burlington Airport was in solidarity with a demonstration. On the same day, in Geneva Switzerland protesting, the largest private jet Sales Event in Europe, more than a hundred activists were arrested, demanding an immediate ban on these private jets. What are the the messages that are.

B

The so, let's tell uh you all about our guest Dan he's an educator, a community organizer fighting for climate and social justice.

A

And he's a campaigner with safe, landing, BTV and BTV is the three-letter acronym for the Burlington International Airport.

A

The organization safe, landing BTV demands an immediate ban on private jets and a 50 percent reduction of Aviation emissions at Patrick Leahy International Airport, which is the other name, the new name for Burlington International Airport by 2030. We want those emissions cut in half and you can find safe landing BTV at safe landingbtv.org and on social media at safe landingbtv.

B

Dan also campaigns with flight free, USA and flight free Vermont, where folks pledge to fly less, take a flight free year or quit flying altogether. Because of the climate crisis, you can pledge to be flight free at flightfree.org.

A

So tell us about the event on May 23rd at the airport, yeah.

C

Thanks for having me Jimmy and Danica and for the introduction I, don't have to say any of that stuff now so um yeah the event at the airport was on Tuesday, May, 23rd and uh I am connected in uh safe landing, BTV and flight for USA in Flight free Vermont. We are members of the stay grounded Network.

C

So that's a network of organizations over 200 of them who are demanding an immediate just transition away from Aviation, so an immediate degrowth in the aviation sector, so I'm connected to some of those campaigners in Europe and knew what was going to happen in Geneva on the 23rd and with actually just nine days notice.

C

On a Tuesday at 3 P.M, there were more than 30 people who showed up in solidarity with the activists who, more than 100, who were arrested in Geneva, demanding an immediate ban on private jets, and it was great to be in solidarity with you, Jimmy and you Danica, and the F-35 campaigners and anti-war campaigners. Knowing that there's ongoing resistance to endless expansion at the airport, there's resistance to the military-industrial complex, there's: resistance to militarism and wealth inequality and their climate campaigners.

C

So it felt great, it was a great event, a lot of speakers and looking forward to the next one. Oh.

A

B

Can you give us some background related to the Burlington Airport? um You know who owns it and what what's the current plan with it.

C

Certainly yeah, so this thanks Danica the City of Burlington, owns and operates the airport, even though it's in South Burlington. But if the City of Burlington owns and operates the airport and has full control over it, and so can they can do what they want with the airport um and the Burlington International Airport was not written into Burlington. The Burlington Net Zero Energy road map, which was which they produced in 2019, and so essentially, there is no plan. There's a plan for expansion at the airport.

C

There are Financial incentives to lure more carriers and to have more routes at the airport and to increase uh air traffic and climate pollution.

C

um And you know when mayor Weinberger and the city council say things like we're going to be Net Zero by 2030. That's great! If you just don't count the airport, but that's not actually true, safe landing, BTV came into existence coming out of a coalition that fought and won against an airport rezoning request where they wanted to rezone 11 acres in the Chamberlain neighborhood in South Burlington, and we won, and so that was not so. The airport did not expand its footprint and so safe landing. Btv was created coming out of that victory.

A

Well, that's that's an important thing to come out of a victory, and- and you know when you look at the aviation emissions and the fact that they did not include it in the plan, it really I think there's really something about not including uh a huge source of emissions.

A

C

How big a source.

A

Is Aviation emissions so.

C

A

To Transportation generally, it's.

C

A lot and so I think what's important and so a couple things one. We did just get a report from Nick Longo and the director of Aviation with their accounting of of uh emissions at the airport. Although we've looked at it and there are at least three things that they didn't put in um or that they greenwashed right and so um so we have the number I think it's the nearly 200 000 tons annually. Is that right? That's right! It's.

A

C

It's huge, yes, I, think it's 190, 000 plus, that's the that's the number they gave us, um and so again the City of Burlington does not count that what I think is most important.

C

What drives a lot of my campaigning is the wealth inequality factor of of Aviation, and so one percent of people are responsible for more than half of all Aviation emissions and eighty percent of people on the Earth, which is more that which is 6.4 billion people have never been and will never be on a plane because it's too expensive- and so it's really this intersection in private jets. In particular, this intersection of wealth inequality and climate Injustice, and essentially no plan at the airport from the city right.

A

And when you add in the F-35, you get wealth, inequality and climate Injustice and a tremendous amount of emissions and to do something destructive. It's like it's the worst on steroids.

A

It's just like what could be worse than what they're doing with this airport, yeah both for the planet and for peace and Justice, and for uh social justice and inequality as you're saying uh with the private jets, which are most of the aircraft taking off and landing at this Airport, um it's a it's a it's an activity that is reserved for a fraction of the one percent and they're contributing mightily to the aviation emissions here at Burlington and in other and in many other airports around the country, and it's not doing anything that couldn't be done with civilian passenger Airlines.

A

So, with some exceptions, we do have certain kinds of Aviation small aircraft Aviation like moving organ organs for transplants, things that are medical or they're they're. Well, there are exceptions, but there's a lot of Aviation emissions that could be canceled.

C

Definitely yeah go ahead, Danica and then I'll respond, I, guess yeah.

B

Your your point about um how the airport was excluded, included zero emissions Mission, because a lot of the time you know when we talk about even national uh climate, Justice or climate change related, the um military industrial complex is excluded from them, depending on it's also and actually I think it was Lockheed Martin just last month had their shareholder meeting or two months ago where um they were asked to pass.

B

You know greenhouse gas emissions report and they explicitly had said in their argument against the resolution that the defense industry cannot be uh cannot be expected to adhere to any net zero emissions because of the items that they produce and for the purpose they produce them.

C

Yeah exactly I mean it's really similar to Aviation domestic Aviation, um where most airports, just don't have a number or it's not counted or the state doesn't count it or the city doesn't count it or whoever owns it, doesn't count it and it's the same thing with International, Aviation and international shipping.

C

Where, if you go to climate action tracker it's it says you know insufficient, it's basically, the plan for international shipping and international Aviation is four degrees, Celsius or greater, because there is no plan and you can't trick physics, and so, if you don't, if it's not in a spreadsheet anywhere, the molecules of carbon dioxide are still frying the planet. So that's a great point: I mean if you don't count it. It's still. There.

A

um Right and and Military uh well, the Air Force, the U.S Air Force is the largest contributor to greenhouse gases among the military services by far and it's in its and it's off the charts as far as the amount of emissions from military jets and the F-35 is one of the worst, it burns, 22 gallons of fuel, every minute of flight and that's in straight and level flight, not counting takeoff and hygiene maneuvers.

A

So this is something that is like destruction of climate on it's like. How could you be doing this and that and they're constantly training hundreds of time training flights a month just from this airport, yeah.

C

I actually didn't know the Air Force um part. That was the branch, that's the most polluting, but it makes sense and and so I see the f-35s and then private jets and these other luxury emissions um kind of all in the same basket, and so I look at where we stand in halfway through 2023 in the climate and ecological emergency and they need to shift into emergency mode and I, see um all of the things happening at the airport that are unnecessary, so they're luxury emissions. We don't need them as a species, we need.

C

You know the emissions we produce should be for survival emissions, things like housing and growing Food and Health Care and education, um so the airport that includes the f-35s that includes private jets owned by specific individuals. It includes private jets that you can Charter right. It includes private planes, propeller aircraft, it includes um uh flying clubs. So there was an airplane that recently came to Burlington and left from Westchester County New York. It was the Westchester Flying Club, so some rich person flew it here and then flew it home. It includes short haul flights.

C

You know to Plattsburgh or to Rutland that are unnecessary and it includes recreational flights right. So people flying around you can take a discovery flight through Vermont, Flight, Academy and just you know, see the sunset. So all of those are not necessary for survival of the human species and should be banned immediately and they're destructive for the planet and they're destructive.

A

Total unnecessary waste of of carbon emissions.

C

Yeah yeah, it's wasteful yeah. We don't need it, we don't need it. Yeah.

B

I was going to ask how the f-35s are connected to private jets, and you really hit on that uh just now. So I'm just wondering like what was the response um from people on the ground that your action in May? um Is it like how how the F-35 sort of and militarism sort of folded into that event.

C

Yeah I mean Jim. You can speak to this too, but I. You know it was billed as the airport resistance rally right. So it's here are all these people who are engaged and want to see action at the airport for a lot of different reasons, from climate to peace and Justice to housing and noise pollution and the impact on children's cognition, and we wanted to bring all those people together and happy to hear what you thought about that. Jimmy too yeah.

A

I I think it's really important to keep having actions and Dan has been you're. Mike Jimmy.

A

um Here we are okay, so the uh Dan has been fantastic at organizing and providing leadership to get people active, actively involved. In fact, this was the third demonstration this year that he organized uh since January 1st, so where and I think that this is really a positive thing to get the people uh aware to reach out to the public. The demonstration was was covered by two of the TV stations here in Chittenden, County and I. Think we're getting the word out that the campaign against the F-35 and against abusive private jets is ongoing.

A

It's not going anywhere we're going to be persistent, we're not giving up ever and one of the things that uh that I've learned just from being involved in various campaigns and movements over the years. Is that persistence really matters?

A

If people stay involved and and persist, you you eventually win whether it was whether it was Apartheid in South, Africa or ending uh the nuclear power plant in southern Vermont, or uh ending the war going back to the war in Vietnam or for civil rights, or ending discrimination in against gay people and and all kinds of things, whether it was women's rights or so many different things that persistence and campaigning and keeping at it is what makes the difference eventually, the other side can't handle it anymore and I.

A

Think that's one of the things that we're going to be seeing with this Aviation emissions, particularly the military jets, because it's so wrong. It's so wrong to be doing it in a city and and I think increasingly, people are becoming aware. We can't have uh Wars like this war in that's going on now in the Ukraine and and several other countries around the world, uh Yemen Somalia, Syria, Iraq Afghanistan we've had this whole series of terrible Wars.

A

We can't keep doing that.

C

Yeah go ahead, no.

B

Sorry go: go ahead, Dan I.

C

Was just going to say the you know the F-35 basing in the city- and there are a lot of ways to convince people or to try to persuade people of your campaign and to to make change and I know. Data works for some people and I know. Storytelling is far more effective, but just this Saturday. So it's the first weekend of the month, and so they were training on Saturday and I was with my son, who's almost two and two other toddlers And.

C

There are three other toddlers were all outside and they just came ripping overhead and you know covered his ears um and it's just it's just miserable and I know that it damages his hearing, and um you know there were a bunch of people just hanging outside and with these three Toddlers and it's just it's so it's an assault on the senses and so I just wanted to share that with the with the audience too.

B

Yeah Dan I was wondering if there's like a conversation among you, know, parents and, if that sort of um an Avenue to form some more resistance to not just the f-35s. But you know the airport as a whole um is the effect on children. If that's been like a useful organizing tool at all.

C

Yeah I mean I, think so that's you know. Any campaigning takes time and energy and Outreach, but um I was so inspired when Dr Peter Bingham was on the show last time, I'm a teacher, so I was in the classroom for 11 years um and, if you know, I, think their parents and caregivers in Winooski and Williston and Burlington and everywhere else that if you can share the message of basically endless growth at the airport, not only the f-35s commercial airliners and all the you know, Buzzy propeller aircraft that are flying around all the time.

C

um How that's that's harmful, to learn for learning, um both there's data and then both you know anecdotally. In my experience and a really loud airplane, Roars overhead in a classroom- and you know things stop and that's just kind of how it works and how human beings are so.

A

Right so yeah I used to be a teacher.

C

Too, that's right.

A

And if, when you get interrupted in class, it's really hard to get things started again, it takes time to wait, wait for the interruption and then to resume and get back to where you were, and that happened in over and over again as the Jets go by, you lose a lot of you. You lose a lot of time over the day over the week and over the semester in the year.

A

So this is something that just that, even if it didn't hurt the development, the cognitive development of the Cho of the child, by doing something to the nervous system to the brains themselves, even if it was just the interruption, it would be enough not to do it in a city, and you know what nobody knows this better than the military itself.

A

They have rules and regulations that prohibit it and they're being violated on a daily basis, and so I think we have not just what's right and wrong here, but we have the law on our side as well.

B

Yeah, you know it's it's awesome to be talking to Educators about this, because you know when Jimmy and I push back on the F-35 I think a big response we get is you know whether it's in Vermont or wherever we're having if they're anti-f35 actions is it's for our national security and I I personally, don't believe training f-35s in Vermont is helping our national security all. But you know what does it say when we're when that's that's the framework we view National Security in rather than you know, investing in uh our children's development.

C

Yeah definitely I mean I'm. You know I I'm, actually like Flynn Elementary School and like Hunt Middle School in the new North End in Burlington and I mean every time those go over on a weekday and I taught mostly Middle, School um and and other grades and subjects and stuff, but I. Think of specifically language development, and you know first and second grade and kids learning how to read and just like it's just so damaging.

C

um That's that's pretty much all I think about when I hear them yeah. So right.

A

Right language, development, uh the Air Force itself put out an environmental impact statement and in volume volume two of that statements thousand Pages or more, but in volume two they go into what happens to children under the intense noise of military aircraft and they present the data showing reading, learn uh language, comprehension, mathematical skills and memory and attention and the and the one that that really struck me was attention being an attentive student is so important in every class you take if you want to be successful in school, if you're mine, if you're, not paying attention and you're, not an active participant, you're, not getting as much out of that class, and if the F-35 is hurting that for our children.

A

How is that good for National Security? Isn't that National insecurity? Why are they doing that to Children Here in Vermont? And if you look at the number of children involved just in the oval-shaped noise Zone identified by the Air Force and by the airport itself, there are 6 600 people over almost three thousand families and and with about 20 percent of the population of Vermont being children. That means there are 1300 children in that noise zone.

A

Now, if you live outside the noise Zone a couple of miles from the airport to the side of the runway- okay, it's annoying. It isn't. Gonna Hurt physically hurt you, but if you're in that noise danger zone that was identified by the Air Force, this is not good for children and when you have 1300 children there, this has got to stop. This should not be tolerated, whether whether it's Winooski kids or Burlington, kids or South, Burlington or Williston children or Colchester, it was a piece of Colchester.

A

In fact, the entire Campus of of St Michaels is in the noise Zone, as is the, um as is the Community College of Vermont in Winooski, and we we're really really doing harm to to the to the Future we're doing harm that isn't necessary by having it in a city. You don't have to have it in a city. In fact, when you talk about um the civilian flights as well, other cities have moved their airports out of town like in Denver. Stapleton is closed as an airport. You can't travel there.

A

Now they have a new airport, 10 or 15 miles from Denver now and so the noise of and that's just civilian aircraft, so I think we've we've got to make some change here and we don't have a political leadership.

A

That's on board to protect the people, they've put their uh their emphasis on what's right for the military industrial complex, what's right for future Wars and present Wars, what's right for the rich and super rich and for the one tenth of one percent who get to fly in private jets, we need we need what Bernie was calling for political revolution and he's part of who we need to make a revolution against because he's supporting it.

C

Yeah, yeah and I just want to say um you know in relation to the to action. There are places we can point to where there has been action um specifically related to private jets and and other actions, so skiffle airport, which is in Amsterdam um capped and reduced flights.

C

um Basically because of the climate emergency they were sued by the fossil fuel industry and actually a Court ruled with the fossil fuel industry. So that's now off the table, which is unfortunate, but one day before that ruling they banned uh a lot of flights between midnight and 5 a.m and they banned private jets, so skitful airport band private jets, so there's one place to look and then France recently just banned short haul flights where, if you can get there by train in two and a half hours or less, they basically cancel those routes.

C

That's a lot more difficult than the states with train travel, but there is. There is action and there's resistance, and there are you know, models for us to look at for. Actually you know degrowth of the aviation sector and acting like this. Is you know, shifting into emergency mode as it actually is.

A

Well, I I feel like what you're bringing up is really new in it's really new for me and I, don't think I think we've had you know. We've had a climate movement for quite a number of years now, but the idea that Aviation is such a significant contributor to a greenhouse gas emissions and is unnecessary.

A

It's something that you can stop and that has been stopped in other places. Yeah is really important. Danica.

B

So yeah so Dan. What do you think needs to be done in Burlington? Specifically, you know what do we need to put? What do we need to put a stop to that 35 flights and also you know private aircraft? What do you think is next yeah.

C

So- and you could probably answer this too, but the City of Burlington owns and operates the airport um I think you have asked and I I asked Nick Longo the director of Aviation at the airport almost a month ago, and he hasn't responded yet saying.

C

Basically, can you please confirm that the city can make a rule Banning flights that are under a certain amount of Passenger miles per gallon right, and so that would include at the f-35s that would include private jets and private planes and private flights and and not include you know the United and Delta. You know big airliners um anyway, right.

A

Some of the big airliners get a hundred passenger miles per gallon, whereas the F-35 gets half a passenger mile per gallon and the and these private jets maybe get somewhere between 20 and 45 passenger miles per gallon. So having so, the bigger planes are efficient as far as as far as climate goes, you can.

A

Actually, if you're going to be driving with versus taking a flight, it could be more efficient to take the flight compared to one person in a car in some situations, but that's not true for the private jets and it's certainly not true for the F-35. So this is. This is a situation where the City of Burlington has the authority under the under the rules, because it's the airport proprietor and you have Authority for things you own still in this country, so they can pass a rule.

A

They can make an ordinance in Burlington uh prohibiting any aircraft that gets, let's say less than 50 passenger miles per gallon and the equivalent for cargo aircraft. Yeah. That's right in tons per mile yeah.

C

That's right thanks and um yeah I'm drawn to Aviation, um so we're two minutes left yeah thanks um because it's it really is a matter of justice and like in who flies and who doesn't, and it is minute for minute. You know the most polluting thing that we can do and Aviation is set to Triple by 2050. right and so, uh as we you know, everybody's a climate activist and there's a lot of talk on EVs and renewable energy and Viking and lots of other stuff.

C

But when you talk about Aviation, it's almost as if planes don't burn fossil fuels and and people just like pretend that it doesn't exist.

C

um But since it's a matter of Justice, since it's going to become a bigger percentage of our greenhouse gas emissions, um we have to have. We have to go in the opposite direction because of because our biosphere is collapsing, you know kind of as we speak um and and we have to act immediately.

A

Danica, do you have some final words before we wrap up.

B

Yeah Dan I'm, just wondering you know, for viewers who are tuned in and might be hearing about this all for the first time and your work for the first time. How can people get involved with your organization great.

C

Thanks for the plug at the end here so go to Safe landingbtv.org, you can read history um the background of the campaign. You can learn more about the green washing of the aviation industry. So go there sign up for our mailing list or find us on social media at safe, landing, BTV uh or send me a note and happy to chat.

A

Great, thank you and Danica and I will be back on Skywatch uh for a July early July program first week in July and we're looking forward to seeing everyone again. Then thanks very much thanks.

C

For joining us, thanks for having me on.