PARIS (AP) – Paris' airport operator announced Wednesday that the skies above the Paris region will be closed for six hours as part of a major security operation in the lead-up to the Olympic opening ceremony on July 26.
Paris Airports Chairman Augustin de Romanée said airlines had been given advance warning of the closure and were told they needed to avoid restricted airspace.
“There will be no aircraft over the Paris area for six hours,” he told France Information Radio.
The civil aviation authority and Interior Minister Gerard Darmanin announced that the no-fly zone would expand to a radius of 150 kilometers (93 miles) around Paris.
More than 320,000 spectators are expected to line the waterway for the unprecedented water ceremony on the Seine River, which runs through the French capital, and is the toughest safety challenge for Paris organizers.
The commander of the French military's AWACS squadron previously told The Associated Press that at least one French military AWACS surveillance aircraft will use powerful radar to monitor potential airborne threats and patrol the skies during the Olympics. He said there is. Other military aircraft could be scrambled to intercept unauthorized flying objects entering restricted Olympic airspace.
Separately, de Romanée said it was “very likely” that small electric air taxis would be trialled carrying passengers over Paris between July 26 and August 26. He said there is still one. The 11th game is said to be a world first.
However, he added that European aviation certification authorities may initially allow taxis to fly with passengers on a trial basis rather than commercially.
“We are very excited that we will be able to carry experimental passengers and pave the way for the world's first flight of an electric vertical take-off aircraft over Paris,” he said.
Several companies are developing electric aircraft that can take off and land vertically. Some companies are already conducting demonstration flights to turn the promise of green air transport into a commercially viable reality.
Mr de Ronet said he was “ready to board” and insisted the aircraft was safe.
Critics fear that taxis whizzing through the skies of Paris will become a noisy and potentially dangerous nuisance, reserved for the wealthy. Anne Hidalgo, the Socialist mayor of Paris, is among those opposed to the proposal to conduct tests on some routes in the Paris region during the convention.
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AP Olympic coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/2024-paris-olympic-games
