While the vast majority of flights that take off every day get to their destinations around the world without incident, it only takes one disruptive passenger to cause significant problems for everyone onboard.
Some recent examples include a United flight that was diverted to Wisconsin after a 75-year-old passenger aboard made “multiple attempts to breach the cockpit.”
In another case, a Frontier flight on the way to Chicago had to land in Miami after one of the passengers tried to open the door mid-flight. Data from the Federal Aviation Administration shows that instances in which a flight was disrupted due to “threatening or violent behavior” from a passenger were up nearly 80% from 2021.
New proposal in United Kingdom would ban drunk and unruly travelers for life
Amid very similar increases in the United Kingdom, the British Department for Transport and Home Office are reported to be working on a national traveler blacklist that would be shared across the country’s airlines.
While similar to the U.S. No Fly list expanded after the September 2001 attacks in end result, this type of nationwide registry is meant to share information not on terrorism but passengers who became violent or unruly in particular after overconsuming alcohol.
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The registry would also allow repeat offenders to be banned for life and on all airlines operating out of the United Kingdom.
The discussions were set off by calls for such a registry from multiple airlines. Jet2, a London-based holiday airline that sees more instances of alcohol-related incidents due to the fact that it flies passengers to many popular party destinations, was the first to call for such a registry after several incidents of violent flights onboard.
Dublin-based Ryanair, which runs a large number of flights into the United Kingdom, has also sounded the alarm on rising instances of alcohol-related misbehavior.
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“Tiny minority of passengers cannot disrupt air travel for the majority”: industry on national ban
“We are lobbying for the creation of a national database so that as well as being banned from flying with us, disruptive passengers will also be banned from flying with other UK airlines,” Jet2 said in a statement earlier in the year.
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The creation of the ban has not been publicly confirmed by the government while details around what will classify as behavior serious enough to be placed on a no-fly list has also not yet been made available.
Other efforts made by a coalition of British airlines earlier this year included a nationwide campaign of airport posters and online ads reminding travelers of the flying bans, fines and jail time that disruptive behavior can bring.
“Additional measures for the most serious cases of disruption, including the creation of a national ban list, are an important next step in ensuring a tiny minority of passengers cannot disrupt air travel for the majority,” Airlines UK industry group CEO Tim Alderslade said to local outlet Sky News. “We welcome the government’s support for further action and will work closely with ministers on delivering the right solutions.”
Related: Another major airline to launch new flight after ban
