Flight attendants are on the front lines. But occasionally, a pilot may intervene.
Occurrences of disruptive passengers aboard commercial flights have risen steadily in recent years, especially during the COVID-19-driven era of mandatory masks on commercial flights. During that time, on January 13, 2021, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) implemented a Zero-Tolerance Policy Against Unruly Passengers. The FAA made this policy permanent on April 20, 2022. When announcing the policy as a permanent fixture in commercial aviation, the FAA stated that the policy, along with a public awareness campaign, helped reduce the occurrence of unruly passengers by 60%.
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Unruly passengers can face criminal prosecution and fines levied by the FAA. According to the FAA, in 2022, 2,455 unruly passengers were reported, and $8.4 million in fines were imposed on unruly passengers.
Commercial air travel, for all its advantages, is not without stress-inducing experiences. Delayed or canceled flights, jet lag, fear of flying, or other disruptions, are not for the faint of heart and can understandably lead to frustration. Alcohol plays a role, too, with a good portion of passenger disruptions and unruly behavior fueled, in part, by alcohol. FAA regulations prohibit intoxicated persons from boarding aircraft and the consumption of personal alcohol onboard commercial flights.
Flight attendants are on the front line
In all occurrences of disruptive passengers, flight attendants are on the front line, playing a leading role in handling the situations. They deserve tremendous credit for addressing these challenges professionally and safely.
But do pilots ever have to handle disruptive passengers?
A pilot, especially an aircraft’s captain, is far more likely to be called upon to handle a disruptive passenger while the aircraft is on the ground.
While boarding, a captain can refuse to allow a passenger to board if they believe the person to be intoxicated or otherwise a threat to passenger safety or that of the flight. While circumstances can vary greatly, if a gate agent observes an unruly passenger at the gate, they will most certainly inform the flight crew and captain, who can then decide whether to allow the passenger to board. Aviation security is the business of everyone involved in the process, from security screening to gate agents and flight attendants. All are trained to observe passengers for possible threats and to de-escalate when possible.
The captain is the final authority aboard the aircraft and could also be called upon to help diffuse an escalating situation with a passenger. Again, a pilot is far more likely to get involved on the ground than once airborne. A conversation with a calm, uniformed aircraft captain might help diffuse a volatile passenger issue and limit the matter from growing into a greater occurrence.
Source: Simple Flying
