Activists target Nice airport over Yacht Show jet arrivals
By Zak Jackson, MonacoViews Editorial
Environmental campaigners disguised as private drivers staged a protest at Nice airport on Wednesday against billionaires flying in by private jet for the Monaco Yacht Show.
Members of the Alliance Écologique et Sociale 06 dressed as VTC drivers at Nice Côte d'Azur airport on Wednesday, holding placards to intercept and criticise the flow of private jet passengers heading onward to Monaco. The demonstration coincided with the opening days of the Monaco Yacht Show, which runs at Port Hercule and along the Digue until 26 September and draws some of the world's wealthiest yacht buyers each year.
The group's action highlights a recurring tension around the show week, when private aviation traffic through Nice spikes sharply as owners, brokers and guests transit to the Principality by helicopter or road. For residents near the port and along the coastal corridor between Nice and Monaco, the protest adds to an ongoing debate about the environmental footprint of an event that has become central to Monaco's fourth-quarter tourism and business calendar.
Monaco authorities have not issued a formal response to the demonstration, which took place on French soil rather than within the Principality. The Yacht Show itself continues as scheduled, with security and transfer operations around Port Hercule unaffected by Wednesday's action in Nice.