Number of drunk air passengers soars
The number of people arrested in the air or at airports for being drunk in the last two years has increased, according to new figures.
The Press Association used Freedom of Information requests to obtain figures, which reveal 273 people were held in 2017 and 2018.
Many of the arrests were made after staff or other passengers were threatened or assaulted.
However, the actual figures will be much higher as the Metropolitan Police, which covers Heathrow, and Sussex Police, who look after Gatwick, did not provide any details, Sky News reports.
Examples that were reported include a 51-year-old man threatening customer services staff with a knife after being stopped from travelling and an on-board fight between two passengers.
Of the 273 cases obtained by PA, 90 were on board planes, with the rest taking place inside airports.
Airlines UK called for the ‘active involvement of government’ to help solve the problem.
A Home Office review is currently looking at regulating sales of alcohol at international airports. Currently, sales beyond the security gates in England and Wales are not regulated by high street licensing laws. Airports in Scotland and Northern Ireland are regulated by their own licensing acts.
One idea is to extend licensing laws to airports in England and Wales so no alcohol could be sold before 10am without an exemption.
A government spokesperson told Sky: 2Most UK air passengers behave responsibly, but any disruptive or drunk behaviour is entirely unacceptable.
"There are already tough penalties for drunkenness on an aircraft – you can be imprisoned for up to two years or given an unlimited fine.
"Pilots also have the power to remove passengers from the plane if they are drunk and the safety of the aircraft or its passengers is threatened.
"We strongly support the use of these powers by the police, airlines and airports to tackle drunk and disorderly behaviour at our airports and on board the aircraft.
"The government is already working with both airports and airlines to identify further ways to tackle the problem of drunk and disorderly passengers as part of our new UK Aviation Strategy."
Lisa
Lisa joined Travel Weekly nearly 25 years ago as technology reporter and then sailed around the world for a couple of years as cruise correspondent, before becoming deputy editor. Now freelance, Lisa writes for various print and web publications, edits Corporate Traveller’s client magazine, Gateway, and works on the acclaimed Remembering Wildlife series of photography books, which raise awareness of nature’s most at-risk species and helps to fund their protection.
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