The government wants to create a national list shared among airlines with information on problem passengers.
Passengers who behave abusively on flights may be included in a national ban list and prevented from flying with any airline, according to a new proposal from the British government.
The plan would allow airlines share information about problem passengers and potentially restrict your access to flights.
Inappropriate, problematic and drunken behaviors increase during the summer travel period when the season is busy. Currently, if a passenger is banned by an airline, you can book flights with another.
“Everyone should be able to enjoy a beer at the airport, but the anti-social behavior on flights is completely unacceptable“, a government source told the BBC. “It threatens the safety of passengers and crew and disrupts their well-deserved holidays.”
Department of Transportation officials will meet with airlines this month to discuss how the proposal might work.
The national database could be jointly managed by the government and the airline industry.
If implemented, the measure would not require changes to current legislation, although it is unclear how the plan would work under current data protection rules – or GDPR.
Currently, passenger data sharing is not permitted by GDPRso a problem passenger, even banned from one flight, could book another.
“Strict laws already exist to deal with offenses committed on flights, but we are exploring with the industry how we can better address this issue, ensuring we crack down on people who persistently cause chaos“, added the government source. “Everyone should be able to fly without problems”.
The issue of problem passengers has been a concern for airlines for some time, with criminal prosecutions being used in serious cases.
In April a court heard that drunken passenger Stephen Blofield, 61, became so aggressive that the Ryanair pilot was forced to abort its first landing on a flight from Krakow to Bristol Airport in November last year. Blofield was sentenced to 10 months in prison.
In February, Jet2 banned two passengers from the airline for life after a fight on a flight from Turkey to Manchester. The company said the inappropriate behavior was “terrible” and led to an emergency landing in Brussels, where the men were detained for intentional assault.
Jet2 chief operating officer Phil Ward said the family-oriented airline is adopting a “zero tolerance policy for inappropriate passenger behavior” and does not hesitate to ban passengers with bad behavior forever.
“We support a government plan for a formal system for sharing information about unsuitable passengers between airlines and have been advocating for it for some time,” Ward said.
“The creation of a national database will mean that, as well as being banned from flying with us, unsuitable passengers may also be banned from flying with other airlines from the United Kingdom. We look forward to meeting with the government to discuss the matter further.”
Airlines UK, which represents the airline industry, welcomed the idea and said it would work with the government to develop the proposal.
“Additional measures for the most serious cases of disruption, including the creation of a national no-go list, are a important next step to ensure that a small minority of passengers cannot disrupt air travel for the majority,” a spokesperson said.
