UK ‘air rage’ incidents triple since pandemic

Incidents of aggressive and disorderly behaviour by passengers flying on UK airlines have tripled in the past three years, according to new figures.

In 2019, 373 reports of intoxicated, violent or unruly passengers on board UK airlines were made to the Civil Aviation Authority, Sky News reported. That number soared to 1,028 in 2022.

Increases in cases of “air rage” – including “mass brawls, sexual assaults, physical violence, drunken threats, verbal abuse, passengers stripping off” – have put cabin crews under more pressure to keep passengers and colleagues safe, said Sky News. A former flight attendant told the broadcaster of several incidents that led to passengers being physically restrained by airline staff.

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Intoxicated passengers are a “bigger issue on ‘party routes’”, The Telegraph said earlier this month, with some flight attendants “deliberately avoiding potentially rowdy flights to destinations such as Ibiza or Mykonos from the UK”.

Travel restrictions for people travelling to and from the UK during the Covid-19 pandemic came to an end in 2022, leading to “a surge in overseas trips”, said Travel Weekly.

The rise in antisocial behaviour is thought to be “largely down to better reporting from one unnamed specific airline and the impact of mask requirements”, said the news site.

In 2018, the government considered plans to limit alcohol sales at UK airports to “crack down” on the number of drunk passengers on board flights, said Sky. But a consultation concluded that there wasn’t enough evidence that doing so would effectively curb the problem.

Conservative MP Gareth Johnson is introducing a 10 Minute Rule Bill into Parliament next week, which would “ensure that violent people who cause mayhem on aeroplanes are actually banned from flying for a specific period of time by a court”, he told Sky News. “This power exists in other countries and should be available here too,” he added.

A spokesperson for the Department for Transport said: “All passengers and crew have the right to feel safe when travelling by air. There is already robust legislation and powers to deal with disruptive passengers, including bans, fines and removal from flights.”