Airlines Take Stand Against Carrying Big-Game Trophies

Even before the killing of Cecil the lion, campaigners had called for major cargo airlines to halt shipments of endangered species killed by trophy hunters.

“Delta, United and American Airlines have already bannedthe hunting trophies, but the senators noted that other airlines have yet to act”.

Namibia has also warned that the airline ban on trophy transportation will hurt its economy and conservation efforts that rely on revenue from hunters.

“UPS takes many factors under consideration in establishing its shipping policies, including the legality of the contents and additional procedures required to ensure compliance”, it added.

“We avoid making judgments on the appropriateness of the contents”.

While Delta Air Lines did not disclose why it decided to ban shipment of animal trophies, UC Irvine economics professor Ian Brueckner said the move is a “public relations victory”.

One of the said airlines who run operations from USA to Africa is Delta Airlines who refuse to accept any hunting trophy heads of wildlife animals.

The U-turn comes after an American dentist killed a well-known lion named Cecil in Zimbabwe last month in an allegedly illegal hunt, setting off a worldwide uproar.

The senators asked the Airlines for America and global Air Transport Association for a list of their members’ policies regarding hunting trophies.

Peter Fitzpatrick says such shipments have been extremely rare in the past because the company does not operate flights to South Africa, where big-game hunting is a booming industry.

Hunting of such game has been suspended barring special permission from wildlife park authorities. Do you think that dentist Walter Palmer should be made accountable for killing Cecil the Lion as a hobby?

South African Airways [SAA.UL] had also placed an embargo on transporting trophies of rhinos, elephants, tigers and lion in April after incidents of false documentation.