Four US airlines stop transporting hunting trophies after global Cecil outrage

lion in krugerSince the killing of Cecil the lion in Zimbabwe, four US airlines have committed to no longer transporting hunting trophies from the so-called ‘Big Five’ species. Delta Air Lines, United, Virgin Atlantic and American airlines have all changed their rules about transporting hunting trophies so they will no longer carry trophies from lion, leopard, elephant, rhinoceros and buffalo. Furthermore, a group of airlines including Air France, KLM, Iberia, IAG Cargo, Singapore Airlines and Qantas also stated they would ban the transport of trophy-hunting kills, according to Paul Ferris, campaign director at online petition group SumOfUs.org.

“Airlines and other large travel corporations would be foolish to ignore the public reaction to the killing of Cecil the lion, and growing concern about the plight of endangered species,” said Ferris.

In Brief
  • A similar ban was initiated by South African Airways in April, later joined by Emirates, Lufthansa and British Airways. However since July reports have stated that SAA has rescinded the ban and resumed shipping trophy kills.
  • 15,000 American tourists visit Africa on hunting safaris every year, according to Conservation Force, a nonprofit group that advocates responsible hunting.
  • 11 African countries issue lion-hunting permits, including Zimbabwe, South Africa, Namibia and Tanzania.

 

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Jeremy Smith
Jeremy Smithhttp://www.jmcsmith.com
Jeremy Smith is the editor and co-founder of Travindy. He is a writer and communications consultant working for a more responsible and sustainable tourism industry. He is the author of two books, writes a fortnightly blog on responsible tourism for World Travel Market, and provides consultancy to a wide range of companies and organisations, ranging from National Parks to individual hotels and tour operators.

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