The Climate 9 with family and friends outside court this morning.

The first major climate trial since the failure of the Copenhagen talks begins today in Aberdeen sheriff's court.

Nine members of Plane Stupid Scotland are in the dock, following their successful shut down of Aberdeen Airport in March last year. For taking direct action to highlight the climate impacts of expanding the airport - a plan closely linked to business tycoon Donald Trump's proposal to develop a new golf course complex in the area - they're now facing charges of reach of the peace and vandalism.

The Climate Nine are pleading not guilty on the grounds that their actions were taken to prevent the larger crime of runaway climate change - a defence first used successfully in 2008 by our own Kingsnorth Six activists. To support them, they've assembled a witness list of world-renowned experts in climate-related fields, including public health consultant Jenny Griffiths and Professor Geoff Meaden, who contributed to the Kingsnorth Six defence as a flooding and mapping expert.

Hopefully the judge presiding over their case will let common sense prevail. Their public-spirited actions to highlight the climate-wrecking threat posed by massively expanding air travel should be applauded and rewarded, not condemned.

For more information about the case and how you can help, visit the Climate Nine website.