I’m not one to demonize the wealthy as being vapid and self-centered beings who believe their money allows them to break the rules. There are amazing people of substantial wealth in the world who often put others first and use their resources positively on a global level as a humanitarian obligation. The subjects of this story, however, are NOT those wealthy people at all.
CNN has reported that amid the terrifying COVID-19 pandemic, a group of international vacationers decided this was the perfect time to charter a private plane for a lovely little getaway, from London to Cannes, to party it up in the South of France.
In their quest for a weekend jaunt, the group of 10 passengers took to the sky as the dead body count from the Coronavirus reached 20,000 globally with a staggering worldwide number of infections rising beyond 1.5 million people. The group, presumably close friends, were of various nationalities, including Croatian, French, German, Romanian, and Ukrainian.
As sometimes the uber-wealthy can be a bit detached from the happenings of everyday life, somehow, this group, aircrew, and pilot seemed to be unaware that France was on a nationwide, emergency lockdown to prevent further spread of the Coronavirus.
French aviation control reportedly informed the pilot earlier that day that all flights and entry to the area had been banned except for medical personnel and medical supply transport services. However, the group ignored the warning and headed to France anyway.
According to CNN,
The trip was organized by a Croatian national working in real estate and finance, the Air Border Police official said, adding that the man had rented the plane and three helicopters, as well as a villa in Cannes. He told authorities he had “a lot of money” and wanted “to just pay a fine and go to Cannes,” the official told CNN.
Upon landing, the seven foreigners were refused entry into France by the border police, and nine passengers returned to London, including the three French nationals, while a Ukrainian passenger rented a plane to Berlin, the official said.
So like I said at the start of this article, not all rich people are self-absorbed, however, this group’s behavior, at the height of our deadliest viral outbreak since 1917, does very little to support an argument to the contrary.
