MP calls for to ban air rage thugs from flying as incidents soar
An MP is making an attempt to alter within the legislation to cease thugs inflicting havoc on flights.
Gareth Johnson is introducing his invoice after the variety of air rage incidents tripled in three years.
In 2019, 373 experiences of intoxicated, violent or unruly passengers on board UK planes had been made to the Civil Aviation Authority – however that quantity had soared to 1,028 by 2022.
Mr Johnson, the Tory MP for Dartford, will set out his plan to the House of Chambers on Wednesday.
He stated: “This bill aims to ensure violent people who cause mayhem on aeroplanes are actually banned from flying for a specific period of time by a court.
“The difficulty we have currently is someone can be violent on a particular operator’s aeroplane and then that operator cannot pass that information on to another operator.
“If you introduce this legislation, this will make it even less likely to happen.” He added: “It is correct that folks could be banned from driving, they are often banned from being an organization director and they are often banned from soccer matches.
“The same should apply for people who behave violently on planes.”
One recent report claimed intoxicated passengers were a “bigger issue on party routes”, with some flight attendants “deliberately avoiding destinations such as Ibiza or Mykonos”.
Currently, drunken passengers can face fines of up to £5,000 and two years’ imprisonment.
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.”
Anna Bowles, at the Civil Aviation Authority, added: “This type of behaviour is completely unacceptable and can pose a risk to aircraft safety.
“The aviation industry undertakes a range of measures to tackle this issue and passengers could face criminal charges with severe penalties, even prison, for aggressive behaviour.”