Sea Life Brighton is offering free admission to all passengers who were due to travel on the delayed easyJet flight EZY9746, from Zante to London Gatwick on Sunday 30 July.
Dozens of passengers were left stranded after a technical fault grounded their plane – and a replacement jet could not be sent due to Zante’s ban on night-flights during the loggerhead turtle mating season.
The loggerhead turtle is an endangered species, however, loud noise from low flying planes can often scare pregnant turtles into abandoning their nests mid-way, or simply not making nests at all, further jeopardising the existence of the creatures.
With the nests most commonly formed at night, Zante has banned all night-flights from its airport, a move welcomed by conservationists but less popular with the weekend’s abandoned holidaymakers.
Sea Life Brighton is committed to the conservation and protection of marine life, and as such has chosen to reach out to the disappointed passengers; inviting them to enjoy the wonders of the ocean at the aquarium while also educating them about the logic behind their lengthy delay.
Max Leviston, General Manager at Sea Life Brighton explained: “We are offering all those who were due to fly on flight EZY9746 from Zante to Gatwick on Sunday 30 July a free visit. As a family attraction, we understand how hard people save for their holidays and how frustrating their travelling experience must have been.
“At the same time, we believe the ban on night flights during the loggerhead turtle mating season is vital. Turtle conservation is a cornerstone of our aquarium’s charity work and we are keenly aware of the dire situation of the loggerhead turtles in Greece. We would love to offer the passengers who were stranded the opportunity to learn more about why the night plane ban is in place at Zante airport and how it protects this beautiful, endangered species.”
Turtles are currently one of the ocean’s most vulnerable species owing to low reproduction rates, destruction of nesting sites, commercial fishing net practices and pollution.
Sea Life Brighton is dedicated to helping the plight of turtles in the wild, in conjunction with the Sea Life Trust’s #TeamTurtle initiative.
EasyJet passengers due to fly on EZY9746 wanting to find out more about turtle conservation and take advantage of a free visit to Sea Life Brighton are asked to show their boarding cards at reception. A free ticket will be issued for every person with a boarding card and a 40% discount offered to guests accompanying groups with boarding cards. The offer is valid until 31 December 2017.
To find out more about Sea Life Brighton, please visit: www.visitsealife.co.uk/brighton
To help protect sea turtles in the wild by pledging support for the SEA LIFE Trust’s #TeamTurtle campaign, protecting sea turtles from plastic pollution, please visit: teamturtle.sealifetrust.org.
