Aim: to ban the sale and use of nut and nut products (such as nut cooking oil) in food offerings, and ALSO to give air stewards the right, under law or policy, to inform a passenger with externally purchased nuts that they are not at liberty to consume them during flight. My Cousin, and Julie's niece and Goddaughter, Amy May Shead is a 30-year-old woman who was left severely brain injured after a catastrophic allergic reaction to one mouthful of food containing nut-products, while on holiday in Budapest. While this tragic incident, which has left Amy unable to walk, talk or see, did not occur on an airline, The Amy May Trust, the organisation raising vital funds for Amy's continual medical care and rehabilitation are raising awareness of the dangers of nuts and nut products to other nut allergy sufferers.  Airlines are a confined space and a unique environment compared to all other modes of transportation. Unlike other forms of both private and public transport, or open spaces (all of which can be fatal to a nut allergy sufferer), an airline is an airtight tube within which the ventilation system can cause serious consequences to passengers who may be affected by contaminated air. Equally, if a reaction takes place onboard, the patient will require urgent and time-sensitive medical care, often within moments of the reaction taking place, even with personal medication such as an EpiPen, reaching a hospital within the required time is an unfeasible solution when thousands of feet in the air.  Off the back of UK national exposure of Amy's tragic story, The Amy May Trust are petitioning to remove all nuts from airlines.  While we understand the small comforts of travelling, such as a snack with your first-holiday drink onboard, we also realise the seriousness of many allergies, of which nuts pose a life or death danger, which is why we believe nuts and nut products should be banned from this unique mode of transport. We also appreciate the vast majority of airlines handle a passenger with a nut allergy extremely well, yet a blanket ban and the right for an air steward to inform a passenger with externally purchased nuts that they are not at liberty to eat them while onboard, will dramatically reduce the risk to both the sufferer and the airline. There are many alternative snacks to offer onboard a flight, but a nut allergy sufferer has only one life. 

SeaWorld celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2014 but it also marked another anniversary - 50 years of holding orcas captive for ‘entertainment’ purposes. Orcas live in tight family groups who usually stay together for life. SeaWorld ripped many of these wild families apart in the 60s and 70s. Although they don't capture from the wild anymore, they now breed orcas from as early as 6 years old. In the wild, orcas do not start breeding until they are around 15. Impregnating orcas so young has resulted in many mothers rejecting their calves or being aggressive towards them and mothers not knowing how to nurse properly which leads to their calves dying within the first few months. Surviving calves often have to be raised by trainers. Without any bond to their mothers, these orcas do not learn how to nurse and cannot bring up their own offspring. Captivity causes orcas mental distress, as seen in Tilikum (pictured above), who was involved in the death of three humans, and Kasatka, who dragged her trainer Ken Peters under water multiple times in an attempt to drown him in 2006. I do not want to see these beautiful creatures suffer any longer. I also do not want to see another human being die in these theme parks just because the owners of these parks cannot let go of their traumatised star attraction. WDC, Whale and Dolphin Conservation, a charity I am a supporter of, are backing my calls for British Airways to stop working with SeaWorld. In response to WDC’s recent campaign, Virgin Holidays are looking carefully at their future relationship with the captivity industry. I hope BA will step up to the mark and do the same. We ask BA to stop selling trips to SeaWorld. After 50 years of making millions of dollars profit for SeaWorld's Shamu Stadium, we want to see a better future for these magnificent, intelligent and socially complex whales. BA responded positively to WDC’s campaign asking cargo airlines not to transport live whales and dolphins captured in the wild. We hope they will extend their positive response to our wish for an end to the suffering these orcas endure in confinement in the name of ‘entertainment’.Photo credit: P.Wigmore

Der berühmte Vergnügungspark SeaWorld in Florida, Kalifornien und Texas, feierte 2014 Ihr 50-jähriges Jubiläum. Das Jahr 2014 kennzeichnet jedoch noch ein weiteres Jubiläum – 50 Jahre, in denen Orcas von SeaWorld in Gefangenschaft gehalten und zu Vergnügungszwecken zur Schau gestellt wurden. Der Film BLACKFISH (zum Trailer) erklärt gut, was für furchtbare Folgen die Gefangenschaft hat. In den letzten Monaten haben Menschen auf der ganzen Welt dafür gesorgt, dass große Firmen, Stars und Sponsoren Ihre Kooperation mit SeaWorld beenden. Mit dieser Petition fordere ich die Fluggesellschaft British Airways dazu auf den Verkauf von Reisepaketen nach SeaWorld zu beenden. Wir wollen eine bessere Zukunft für Orcas - eine Zukunft ohne Zwang, ohne künstliche Befruchtung und ohne dauerhafte Trennung von Familienangehörigen. Schwertwale leben in sehr engen Familienverbänden, die normalerweise ein Leben lang zusammen bleiben. SeaWorld riss viele dieser Familien zwischen 1960 und 1970 auseinander. Da SeaWorld keine Schwertwale mehr aus freier Wildbahn fangen darf, züchten sie jetzt Orcas in Gefangenschaft ab dem Alter von nur 6 Jahren. In freier Wildbahn pflanzen sich Schwertwale in der Regel nicht vor dem Alter von etwa 15 Jahren fort. Die Weibchen so früh zu befruchten hat oft dazu geführt, dass die Mütter entweder ihre Kälber abweisen oder ihnen gegenüber aggressiv werden und dass viele Mütter zu jung sind um zu wissen, wie sie ihr Jungtier aufziehen und ernähren können, wodurch viele Kälber in den ersten paar Monaten ums Leben gekommen sind. Jungtiere, die überlebt haben, müssen oft von Tierpflegern per Hand aufgezogen werden. Diese Jungtiere lernen ohne die enge Bindung zu ihrer eigenen Mutter jedoch nicht, wie sie selbst ihren eigenen Nachwuchs großziehen können. Schwertwale in Gefangenschaft leiden unter psychischem Stress. Das kann man bei dem Orca Tilikum sehen (im Bild oben), der in drei Todesfällen von Menschen involviert war sowie bei Kasatka, die 2006 ihren Tierpfleger Ken Peters mehrere Male unter Wasser gezogen hat, vermutlich um ihn zu ertränken. Ich möchte diese wundervollen Geschöpfe nicht länger leiden sehen. Des Weiteren möchte ich, dass keine Menschen mehr von Orcas in Gefangenschaft getötet werden, nur weil die Eigentümer dieser Parks nicht auf ihre Star-Attraktion verzichten möchten. Erst kürzlich hat der Reiseveranstalter "Virgin Holidays" nach öffentlichem Druck von Whale and Dolphin Conservation verkündet, dass sie ihre Beziehung mit der "Gefangenschaftsindustrie" in Zukunft gründlich unter die Lupe zu nehmen. Letzte Woche hat die amerikanische Fluggesellschaft Southwest Airlines verkündet, dass sie ihre 25jährige Partnerschaft mit SeaWorld NICHT FORTSETZEN WERDEN und nach dem Auslauf ihres momentanen Vertrages keine Reisen mehr nach SeaWorld verkaufen werden. Ich hoffe sehr, dass British Airways dasselbe tun wird. Wir fordern BA dazu auf keine Reisen nach SeaWorld mehr zu verkaufen. Wir wollen, dass diese prächtigen, intelligenten und sozialen Lebewesen nach 50 Jahren, in denen sie nur geschuftet haben um millionenschwere Profite zu erwirtschaften, eine bessere Zukunft vor sich haben. Photo credit: P.Wigmore

Virgin Airlines have announced that they will no longer work with the Home Office to deport immigrants from the UK amidst concerns the Home Office is wrongfully removing members of the Windrush generation and LGBT asylum seekers.People deemed as illegal immigrants are detained and removed using these flights - sometimes this whole process happens in as little as 2 weeks. This leaves very little time to get legal support and to appeal the Home Office’s decision. As a result people who actually have the right to be in the UK, are at risk of being deported - and disgracefully they have been. Last month, the Home Secretary admitted that at least 63 people were wrongly deported from the UK who were part of the Windrush generation. These are people who were invited and immigrated to the UK legally, built their lives and made their homes here and then were forced to leave.   The decision by Virgin to stop participating in this is a big step in helping to save people facing such injustice. I hope that if other airlines follow Virgin’s example, it could encourage the Home Office to make the system better and fairer. That’s why I’m calling on the UK’s largest airline, British Airways (BA) and other airlines, to commit to not helping to deport people too.Three major US airlines - American Airlines, United and Frontier - asked the federal government to stop using their flights to transport migrant children who have been separated from their families before Donald Trump signed an executive order to end separations. I want to see UK airlines taking as strong a stance, and standing up for what is right.As the National Chair of BARAC UK - Black Activists Rising Against Cuts - we work regularly with  people who are targeted by the Home Office including those from the Windrush generation and so I see the damage it causes to their lives and the communities they are part of when they are torn away. The tide is turning. Corporations are learning that it is important to listen to the public and recognise the role they play.Please sign my petition.

With the devastating reversal on the ban to import trophies of elephants, it is up to the airlines to come together and ban transport of any such trophies. Lest we forget, elephants remain threatened under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). By lifting this ban, the already dwindling elephant population will experience catastrophic devastation. Please help save these majestic creatures.

It is the petition to the Government of Canada, British Government and the Indian Government to Start the Non-Stop direct flights between Toronto-Amritsar, Vancouver-Amritsar and London Heathrow-Amritsar. In 2019, World Over Communities are Celebrating the 550th Parkash Purab (Gurpurab) of 1st Sikh Guru Nanak Dev ji, it will be celebrated in the big way across the Globe. Recently, Government of India & Pakistan announced to open and develop the Kartarpur Sahib Corridor for Sikh Pilgrims from where they can go to the Gurudwara Darbar Sahib in Kartarpur without Visa/Passport formalities. People from across the Globe will come to visit & pay obeisance at the Historical Gurdwara’s in Amritsar, Dera Baba Nanak, Sultanpur Lodhi, Kartarpur Sahib (Pakistan). Amritsar is the closest Destination to all these points. But there are no direct flights from Toronto, Vancouver, London Heathrow to Amritsar. There is big presence of over 1.2 Million Punjabi's in Canada alone and the Punjabi Diaspora is demanding nonstop flights to Amritsar from many years. Similarly, there is big presence of Punjabi's in London Metropolitan Region & in other parts of United Kingdom, Europe who are asking for non-stop flights to Amritsar from the last many decades. Punjabi's are facing great inconvenience in travelling because of non-availability of direct flights to the International Airport in Amritsar. Amritsar is hardly 1-3 hours from all Districts of Punjab, Himachal Pradesh & Southern J&K Districts. while travel time form Delhi is over 5-8 hours. Direct flights from Toronto, Vancouver, London Heathrow to Amritsar will be the great relief for over 4.5 Million Punjabi's settled in Canada/USA/Europe/United Kingdom. Amritsar is a Preferred Destination for the Punjabi Diaspora and Foreign Tourists who come here to pay obeisance at the Darbar Sahib (Golden Temple) and other Historical, Religious Places in the region. It hosts more than 35 million pilgrims annually. More than 6 million Punjabis settled in North America, Europe, Australia, South East Asia and Middle East Countries. Over 4.5 Million Punjabi's settled in North America, Europe & United Kingdom only. It is a long-standing pending demand of Punjabi Community to have non-stop flights between Toronto - Amritsar, Vancouver - Amritsar, London Heathrow - Amritsar. Earlier, Air India used to operate the Amritsar - London Heathrow - Toronto flight which was the most successful flight in the history of the India's National Carrier But Air India ceased operations of ATQ-LHR-YYZ flight in October 2010 due to unspecified reasons. Presently, due to the unavailability of Toronto - Amritsar, Vancouver - Amritsar, London Heathrow - Amritsar Non-Stop flights, Punjabi's are facing Inconvenience while travelling to their roots in Punjab region. Amritsar is the International Tourist Destination, focal point for Sikhism, one of the most visited cities of the world. Sikhs as well as Punjabi's have deep love and faith in Sri Darbar Sahib (Golden Temple) Amritsar. The flights will increase connectivity and will be huge fillip for Trade and Commerce by crating more options for the export of commodities, fresh vegetables and other assortments that are always in high demand in Canada and United Kingdom. Through this petition, we humbly request to the Honorable Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Hon’ble British Prime Minister Theresa May, Hon'ble Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to guide and take personal interest starting these direct non-stop flights between Toronto - Amritsar, Vancouver - Amritsar, London Heathrow - Amritsar. These are the most demanding, profitable and lucrative routes. It will be great convenience to the Punjabi Community of United Kingdom/Canada if the non-stop flights starts from Toronto, Vancouver, London Heathrow to Amritsar.   Michael - Amritsar Vikas Manch (FlyAmritsar Initiative) 

British Airways and Virgin Atlantic control over 80% of all direct flights between the UK and the Caribbean. Both companies operate a fares policy which discriminates against travellers who begin their journey in the Caribbean. For example, a passenger starting their journey in the Caribbean has to pay up to 80% more to travel on the same plane, at the same time and on the same day as a passenger starting their journey in the UK. This unfair discrimination should be stopped. Passengers starting their journey in the Caribbean should have access to the same fares as those starting their journey in the UK.

I believe it is time to make our thoughts clear to the States of Guernsey about the extortionate prices we are forced to pay in order to leave the island by air. I have lived in Guernsey all of my life, and I am currently a university student. Therefore, I regularly travel to the UK via a flight to London Gatwick with Aurigny, as like many others, I consider Condor Ferries to be too unreliable, especially in winter. I also tend not to use Blue Islands due to their UK destinations being limited to only Southampton and Jersey. Their prices are expensive, although tend to be moderately less so than Aurigny. For families and other individuals that want to travel further abroad, the extra cost of having to travel to the UK beforehand for a connecting flight is a significant setback. I do not believe such high costs to be fair when residents of Jersey do not experience this in the same way, with their much cheaper airfares and wider choice of destinations. Aurigny Air Services, which is owned by the States of Guernsey, makes a loss every year and is expected to make a loss of £3.9m in 2018[1]. This will be a similar outcome to 2017, with ‘a decrease in passenger revenues cited as one of the reasons’ for the loss, according to an article published by the Guernsey Press on 18.05.17[2]. Recently I have struggled to find one-way tickets from Guernsey to London Gatwick for less than £79.99, with most escalating to much higher prices. It seems to be a rarity to find one-way tickets for under £99.99, with prices tending to be around £129.99 and often as high as £199.99[3]. If Aurigny needs to charge customers that much yet is still in deficit every year then I believe their business model is flawed and requires reconsideration. Jersey Airport currently has three main airlines with regular routes; EasyJet, British Airways and Flybe. British Airways is currently (correct 12.02.18) advertising flights from Jersey to London Gatwick for £35.00 each way[4], and its competitors are very similar in price - this is less than half the price we must pay to fly with Aurigny to get to the same destination. By having such large, well-known airlines with regular routes to the island, Jersey also benefits from advertising on their websites. Not only this, but you are able to book hotels and view tourist information. Guernsey does not have this, giving Jersey’s tourist industry a large head-start. Being so close and such a similar market, Jersey is our closest competitor for tourism. Jersey has a significantly higher amount of tourist information available to the public, is better advertised and has more tourist attractions. Furthermore, it is accessible from more destinations and people can choose between more than one airline. This has proven to be worthwhile due to Jersey attracting 718,000 visitors in 2017[5], around 8 times more than visited Guernsey which was approximately 87,800[6]. It is because of these points that I see no real reason why someone who has never been to the Channel Islands would choose to spend at least double, often triple, the price to fly to Guernsey over Jersey. If Guernsey was more cheaply and easily accessible, its tourist industry would highly likely improve. This would, in turn, give more reason for investors to create tourist attractions. Jersey’s higher visitor numbers are visibly benefiting the island with the amount and quality of hotels, tourist information and attractions. I believe that the extortionate cost of getting to Guernsey by air (the quickest and most reliable form of transportation to the island) is proving detrimental to the tourist industry and I believe the way forward for our tourist and hotel industries is less expensive travel. In an article published by the Guernsey Press on 08.03.17[7], it is said that the majority of the island’s businesses are calling for a runway extension. This would allow the island to be more flexible, and, as said in the article, ‘it would say that Guernsey is open for business’. I agree with this statement, as more airlines would be capable of reaching the island, and larger (although not excessive) aircraft would be able to land in Guernsey. A particular example is British Airways, whose smallest planes are still too large for Guernsey’s 1463m runway[8], but are capable of landing on Jersey’s 1706m runway[9]. Frustratingly, EasyJet had shown interest in flying to Guernsey in 2013, but they withdrew their application for the route due to the States giving Aurigny so much control over routes that it became uneconomical for EasyJet[10]. Competition drives down prices and prevents a single company having a monopoly, and Guernsey is a prime example of this problem as it is obviously not currently benefiting from this. A partnership between EasyJet and Aurigny is being established, according to recent information[11]. This is a good first step towards solving some issues, such as guaranteed connecting flights and extending the island’s marketing reach as it will become a destination on the EasyJet website. That said, it still does not solve the issue of extortionately high Aurigny ticket prices nor the significant cost incurred by having to book two flights rather than one because a connecting flight is required.  To conclude, what I am appealing for is a public response from the States of Guernsey giving us answers. I believe we deserve reasons as to why airfares are so high, why we are not welcoming competition from other airlines and why the runway has not been extended. We deserve clear information on the strategy that will be implemented to ensure reasonably priced travel to and from the island for both residents and visitors. Please sign and share this petition to support me in getting our voices heard. Changes need to be made.         Sources: [1] http://www.itv.com/news/channel/2017-10-10/aurigny-set-to-make-3-9m-loss-in-2018/[2] https://guernseypress.com/news/2017/05/18/aurignys-losses-set-to-reach-6-3m-in-2017/[3] https://www.aurigny.com[4] https://www.britishairways.com/en-gb/destinations/jersey[5] https://business.jersey.com/jersey-statistics[6] http://www.guernseytrademedia.com/sites/default/files/travel_survey_q2_2017.pdf[7] https://guernseypress.com/news/2017/03/08/majority-of-businesses-want-longer-runway-economic-development-president/[8] http://www.airport-technology.com/projects/guernsey/[9] http://www.boeing.com/resources/boeingdotcom/commercial/noise/jersey.html[10] http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-guernsey-24627129[11] http://www.itv.com/news/channel/2017-09-29/aurigny-set-to-partner-with-easyjet-for-new-connections-service/ [Photograph] https://www.visitguernsey.com/sites/visitguernsey/files/styles/ripple_tourism_hero/public/embraer_aurigny.jpg?itok=KJZ7AKR_  

On Friday 19 October, 77-year old Delsie Gayle was physically threatened and left shaken after receiving a horrific torrent of racist abuse on a Ryanair flight. A white male passenger launched a screaming tirade of racism at Delsie on a flight back from Barcelona to Stansted. As shown in this video, he aggressively invades her space, leaning over his seat and pointing his hand so threateningly that another passenger has to intervene to stop him hitting her. His comments include:  “I don’t care whether she’s f****** disabled or not – if I tell her to get out she gets out.” “I will carry on as far as I can with this ugly black bastard.” “If you don’t go to another seat, I’ll push you to another seat.”  “Don’t talk to me in a f****** foreign language you stupid ugly cow.” The incident began when Delsie's arthritis prevented her from moving out of her seat quickly, to let the man into his window seat. Delsie was travelling back from Barcelona with her daughter, who had planned the holiday to try and give her mum something to smile about after losing her husband of 50 years. Since the incident, Delsie has not heard from Ryanair. She has been left feeling so depressed that she 'can't sleep or eat'. “I feel very low, because he pay his fare to go on holiday, I pay mine, so why does he abuse me for that due to the colour of my skin?" ******************************************************************************************* Ryanair's terms and conditions clearly state that: 11.1. If, in our reasonable opinion, you conduct yourself aboard the aircraft so as to endanger any person on board, or obstruct the crew in the performance of their duties, or fail to comply with any instructions of the crew...or behave in a manner which we reasonably believe may cause or does cause discomfort, inconvenience, damage or injury to other passengers or the crew, we may take such measures as we deem reasonably necessary to prevent continuation of such conduct, including restraint. You may be disembarked and refused onward carriage at any point, and may be prosecuted for offences committed on board the aircraft. This is the airline that turned a flight around after a man drunk too much and fined him £2,500. Yet this perpetrator was allowed to racially attack a vulnerable women and received no restraint from cabin crew - to the point that other passengers had to step in and the women herself had to move. I am therefore calling for the following: A full apology from Ryanair to Delsie Gayle, a refund of her flight and agreed compensation. A full police investigation into the incident; with the aim of bringing judicial action against this man for committing a criminal offence with his threatening behaviour and racist, hateful language. Ryanair to be fined for breaching their terms and conditions, and code of conduct, therefore putting passengers in danger. An explanation from Ryanair as to why the situation was handled so inadequately. It is 60 years since Rosa Parks was forced to give up her seat because of racial discrimination. It is imperative that we refuse to accept such events today. We've come too far to sit back and let anyone be treated in that way, simply because of the colour of their skin. Please share with your networks accordingly.     

After almost 28 years of supersonic travel, Concorde was prematurely retired in October 2003 and despite British Airways pledging to keep one Concorde flying in a heritage capacity, Concorde has not left the ground since 26th November 2003. On that date, a new global campaign was formed - the Save Concorde Group - with the the sole objective of seeing this aircraft fly again in a heritage capacity. In the first 12 months, and with the lack of today's social media tools which back then could probably have prevented Concorde's demise, a 25,000 strong hand-signed petition was delivered to the Prime Minister at 10 Downing Street to call upon the Government's immediate intervention to assist with getting Concorde airborne again. Unfortunately, that Government (and subsequent ones since) have felt unable to intervene in this issue as they feel they have no locus to intervene in Concorde which is a wholly privately owned asset of British Airways. Nearly 12 years on since the final flights, it still remains entirely possible that Concorde could fly again as there is no technical reason prohibiting it flying again. The only issues preventing Concorde from flying again are simply political on many fronts. For more than a decade, speculation has been rife amongst enthusiast groups when discussing Concorde flying again and how much it would cost. Some have estimated £15m, others have guesstimated at several hundred million pounds. However, with the lack of a feasibility study having been commissioned, NOBODY knows. In 2009/10, SCG directly questioned British Airways, who remains the owner of their Concorde fleet despite them resting in museums since they were retired, if they would release a copy of this feasibility study they claimed to have undertaken having previously stated in any media responses that their conclusion was it was not commercially viable. However, British Airways' CEO Willie Walsh, stated to us that he did not know if such a study even existed, never mind if it had been carried out and what it's results were with a view to sharing that with us. When it comes to aviation history, Britain is a serious player and every corner of the British Isles oozes anecdotes and items of major national interest. This has been epitomised in the last few years with various flights by the Red Arrows and the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight who grace our skies at events of major national interest such as the 2012 London Olympics and Her Majesty The Queen's Diamond Jubilee throughout which Concorde was nowhere to be seen. And later this year, the Avro Vulcan XH558 will fly for the last time having successfully been restored to heritage flight capacity by the Vulcan To The Sky Trust. All we ask, is for Concorde to have her rightful place amongst such festivities and we call upon British Airways, Airbus SAS, Air France and the British and French Governments to put aside the history of why Concorde was prematurely retired and collaborate in the same spirit Concorde was born from in co-operating to determine whether we could see Concorde fly again. http://www.saveconcordegroup.co.uk/http://www.facebook.com/saveconcordegrouphttp://www.facebook.com/groups/saveconcordegroup/http://www.twitter.com/save_concorde