Last year, airlines reported more than 10,800 incidences involving an unruly passenger. The result is a more than 1,000-incident increase over the previous year, reports the International Air Transport Association, or about one incident for every 1,205 flights.

The most typical incident involves verbal abuse on the part of the passenger or an unlawful failure to follow crew instructions. About 11 percent include physical aggression toward fellow passengers, the crew or the aircraft itself. In 23 percent of cases, drugs or alcohol play a role. However, generally the alcohol or drugs were consumed before boarding and were not provided by the crew.

“Unruly and disruptive behavior is simply not acceptable. The antisocial behavior of a tiny minority of customers can have unpleasant consequences for the safety and comfort of all on board. The increase in reported incidents tells us that more effective deterrents are needed. Airlines and airports are guided by core principles developed in 2014 to help prevent and manage such incidents,” said Alexandre de Juniac, director general and CEO, IATA.

Over the past several years, airlines have set standards for handling unruly passengers, with a focus on more efficient prevention and incident management. Some have additionally focused on the role alcohol plays, with an effort to prevent excessive drinking and intoxication prior to boarding. A call is made for many airport bars and duty-free shops to more carefully serve alcohol and avoid any encouragement of heavy drinking before flights. One airline proactively targeting alcohol consumption, Monarch Airlines, said it cut disruptive behavior by 50 percent through such initiatives.

“There is no easy answer to stem the rise in reported unruly behavior. We need a balanced solution in which all stakeholders can collaborate. The industry’s core principles can help to manage the small percentage of passengers who abuse alcohol. And it must be balanced with efforts by governments taking advantage of all their deterrence mechanisms … ” added De Juniac.

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