Due to the recent rise in violent incidents on planes, two of the largest airlines have banned the consumption of alcohol on flights. Southwest is the first to bring on this new rule and now American Airlines joins the fleet. With vaccines becoming a norm and travel opening up, more and more people are booking their vacations. Who doesn’t like to have a cocktail in celebration of your vacation, but some people don’t know when to stop.
The incident that led to the banning of alcohol was on a Southwest flight, which involved a flight attendant and a passenger. Unfortunately, the passenger ended up knocking two teeth out of the flight attendant’s mouth during their altercation. This was all captured on camera after the flight attendant asked the passenger repeatedly to keep her seat belt fastened. Battery charges and a lifetime airline ban are the consequences the passenger is now facing.
Although this ban is not permanent, and not all airlines have joined in, there are loopholes. The interesting news about this ban is that it is only applicable for the passengers who travel in economy class. Many are questioning why businesses and first-class will continue to receive their alcohol services without any delays and postponement. Sadly, with the statistics, most of the violent incidents occur in the economy. Continue reading some of the reasons violence has increased and why alcohol bans might be the only solution.
Rise in Violent Incidents Pre and Post Shutdown
Traveling is increasing and compared to March 2020, the airports have experienced a 499% increase in customers. Due to the immense amount of people with cabin fever planning their first flights and vacations post quarantine, tension is rising. Unfortunately, after the incident with Southwest, more airlines are hesitant when deciding to continue alcohol sales.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is now keeping a close eye on and keeping track of the number of attacks. According to the FAA, between January 1st and May 24th, there were 2,500 reports of unruly behavior by passengers reported. Of these 2,500 reports, 1,900 were involving passengers disobeying and having problems with federal face-mask requirements. Since the start of the pandemic, employees and flight attendants have had to battle with unruly customers. Especially in regards to masks and different COVID protocols.
Although many may blame these mandates as the cause for the violent incidents, when mixing anger and alcohol, it is never a good cocktail. With the mask mandates slowly lifting, many see this as a green light for no masks anywhere. Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said during a recent press conference, “It is a federal mandate that one must wear a mask in an airport, in modes of public transportation, on the airplane itself- and we will not tolerate behavior that violates the law.”
Is the Solution to Ban Alcohol?
With the recent spike in violence on planes, airlines like Southwest and American Airlines have banned alcohol until at least September. This will give them the time to see if the ban is helping to bring these statistics down. More than 90% of the cases were reported in economy class. This being said, American Airlines has completely banned alcohol sales for economy class passengers.
Brady Byrnes, American Airlines managing director of flight service training and administration, in a memo, also explained this fact in the following words, “We also recognize that alcohol can contribute to typical behavior from customers onboard, and we owe it to our crew not to potentially exacerbate what can already be a new and stressful situation for our customers.” Although alcohol consumption is a legally controlled substance, any substance legal or not, when used excessively can be dangerous.
More than 15 million adult Americans have alcohol use disorder of some kind and need regular treatment. During the pandemic, data reveals that only 7% of addicts receive treatment. While 93% do not care for any kind of disease control and prevention. These statistics are scary but unavoidable with alcohol at anyone and everyone’s disposal.
Do You or a Loved One Need Help?
Various alcohol and drug rehabilitation centers also play their part in maintaining peace by providing highly individualized services. One of the most prominent examples is the Harm Reduction Center which is a private Healthcare facility that offers integrated medication-assisted treatment and all outpatient levels of care. The experts at Harm Reduction Center believe that recovery should be different for everyone and the cultivation of the recovery process requires many different techniques.
If you want to chat with experts at the Harm Reduction Center for free, Click Here!
