FAA calls for more than $500,000 in fines against dozens of disruptive airline passengers

[BumRushDaShow]

Source: Washington Post

The Federal Aviation Administration said Thursday that it is proposing $532,000 in fines against 34 airline passengers accused of disrupting flights, including a person who threw a carry-on bag at other passengers, another who snorted what appeared to be cocaine and another who hid a flight attendant’s jacket. The FAA summaries of the cases portray passengers determined not to wear masks, intent on drinking their own alcohol or vaping, and behaving abusively to other travelers and airline crews.

The proposed fines bring the total that the agency has sought to impose this year to more than $1 million. It’s the latest enforcement effort seeking to maintain order in the skies, as the FAA turns to what previously had been little-used powers to punish passengers who break federal rules governing conduct on planes. The agency says it has received 3,889 reports of unruly passengers this year — 2,867 of them related to a mask mandate intended to slow the spread of the coronavirus.

Twenty-two of the 34 new cases with proposed fines involve passengers accused of not complying with the mask rule, which this week was extended into January 2022. The FAA launched the crackdown on misbehavior in the air at the beginning of the year amid conflicts over masks and concerns about people traveling to and from Washington during the week of the Capitol riot. The agency has asked airports to work closely with police to help bring criminal charges in the most egregious cases.

But the vast number of cases the FAA is pursuing has strained the ability of federal authorities to hold people accountable. A passenger has 30 days to respond when the agency proposes a fine, and in mid-July the FAA told The Post it had resolved seven cases. Some could take years to play out. The new cases point to now-familiar sources of problems in the air, particularly disputes over masks. Eight of the new cases involve passengers accused of drinking alcohol not served by airlines, coming days after the FAA asked airports to try to stop passengers from bringing to-go drinks aboard planes. A handful of cases involving vaping, which, like smoking, isn’t allowed on planes.

Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/transportation/2021/08/19/faa-fines-unruly-passengers/

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Good. They act like a bunch of toddlers.

And I always thought TSA didn't allow your own beverages (let alone alcohol) aboard a plane.

(ETA - I guess because all those concessions are there after you get past the security)

[IronLionZion]

1. TSA is concentrating hard on feeling up brown people

as if the metal detectors and full body scanning machines would miss anything on people darker than tan.

There are plenty of stores inside the airport to buy liquids and alcohol.

[NoMoreRepugs]

2. I expected the number to be far greater, considering the

incredible number of DumbAss Deplorable MaskHoles.

[appalachiablue]

3. Years back my brother said a friend

was on a NY-LA flight with a troublesome passenger. The woman, a well known Hollywood star was drunk and threw hot coffee on a steward.

That caused the pilot to land the plane in Ohio where he put the woman off and told her she could never fly the airline again.

[Lonestarblue]

4. Ban airport concessions from selling to-go alcohol as a matter of safety.

Since fines are so difficult to collect, ban any passenger who disrupts a flight from flying for a period of at least five years on any domestic airline. Committing a deliberate act that causes a flight disruption or creates a potentially dangerous flight event should be cause for enough losing the privilege of flying.

[RVN VET71]

15. In a rational world, disruptive behavior should be a jailable offense

The dirt bags who scream “Me, Me, Me,” while screwing up the plans of every other airline passenger -- not to mention the crew and flight attendants -- deserve incarceration plus a 5 figure fine. That plus a ban from ever flying with any domestic airline again. Period.

In many of the cases reported, the “disruption” should be classified as a felony with the disruptor(s) restrained as the plane aborts the flight and lands in the nearest available airport. The criminal(s) should then be transported to the nearest jail or prison facility to await trial. No bail. If SCOTUS thinks it’s too harsh, maybe SCOTUS should be required to fly in coach to see how vulnerable every passenger is on an aircraft whose flight is disrupted by a dangerous and violent moron.

[DeeNice]

19. Seriously, how much does an unplanned landing cost?

The fines should be at least triple that. No to mention costs incurred by the other passengers. Missed connections and so forth.

[RVN VET71]

26. Yep, agree totally.

And the disruptors should be levied with the full cost of the unplanned landing, plus be held vulnerable for the costs incurred by the passengers whose lives and business, family, and vacation plans were affected.

All that plus jail time.

I remember a drunken fool who apparently dumped -- seriously, dropped trou’ and let loose -- on a snack cart that was blocking his access to the head. He was busted and fined $50,000. Don’t recall how much jail time was involved, but there was some. I think that punishment would be a good start. Treat all disruptors like they just took a dump on the snack cart, and penalize them accordingly.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/1995/10/29/coffee-tea-or/a610cd4d-b85a-4dd3-aeb9-4fa95b6daceb/

also here:https://boingboing.net/2015/11/25/worst-ever-air-rage-passen.html.

He received no jail time, for some reason, and only 300 hours of community service. Other’s have gotten up to a year -- without dumping on the snack cart! But This guy was flying first class, so there’s that.

[csziggy]

28. On cruise ships, they "store" your duty free booze and return it at the end of the cruise

The major reason, of course, is that they want to make the maximum profit from their passengers, but a system such as this could be followed by airlines. Passengers would have to declare their alcohol purchases as they board the plane, the airline would store them in such a way as to return them as the passengers disembark.

On our cruise to Cozumel years ago I cracked up the cruise line people collecting booze from returning passengers. I had purchased to half liter bottles of vanilla extract, which of course contains alcohol, so I offered those to them for storage. They had never had anyone do that and sort of lost it.

By FDA standards, pure vanilla extract contains a minimum of 35 percent alcohol, the same proof as Captain Morgan rum. You can’t buy it in liquor stores, but it’s sold in grocery stores and for many, it is a household staple.
https://www.news10.com/news/national/school-warns-of-students-putting-vanilla-extract-in-coffee-getting-drunk/

[CurtEastPoint]

5. The FAA should donate the fines to mental health services in the US

[mopinko]

6. i'm good w mental health care for their employees.

the industry has borne some bullshit in this plague.
in fact, i hope they pass at least some of that on to the actual employees.

[CurtEastPoint]

7. Great idea!

[Mr. Evil]

8. Simple solution...

Install airlocks on all commercial airlines. Any disruptive or dangerous passenger gets ejected.

[discntnt_irny_srcsm]

9. Maybe just issue stun guns to the crew. I'm not that vicious.

Well, yeah. I probably am. If you disrupt my flight, especially on the way home, yeah, I will push you out the door.

[keithbvadu2]

13. "If you disrupt my flight," - Absolutely!

[discntnt_irny_srcsm]

23. I like that ejector seat idea.

[AllaN01Bear]

27. the crew ie the pilot/co pilot can arrest a disruptive passenger

put them in cuffs and lock them in the bathroom. however the airline may have a no contact /confrentation policy after all the hijackings of many years ago. its safer to land the plane and let the police deal with it.

[Mr. Evil]

24. Yup.

We all have our breaking point and I'm already broken. Maybe we can invent a spray that totally encapsulates them until the plane lands. Of course they would piss and shit themselves but, at least the police can easily take them away.

[Ligyron]

11. Yes, ejector seats like on fighter aircraft!

I just had an image of one being ejected over the ocean.

With a parachute of course…

Sure, things will be pretty cold for a while up there and would probably require them hold their breath until they were under 10 thousand feet. But the stewardesses could explain all the necessary steps needed to give them the best chance of survival before takeoff.

[Mr. Evil]

22. Yes,

courteousness is one of all flight attendant's specialties. And before they're ejected, they'll make sure to flash them a bright, big smile!

[bsiebs]

16. It's a little over $15k each...

[Moosepoop]

18. No.

The Federal Aviation Administration said Thursday that it is proposing $532,000 in fines against 34 airline passengers accused of disrupting flights, including a person who threw a carry-on bag at other passengers, another who snorted what appeared to be cocaine and another who hid a flight attendant’s jacket. The FAA summaries of the cases portray passengers determined not to wear masks, intent on drinking their own alcohol or vaping, and behaving abusively to other travelers and airline crews.

$532,000 / 34 = $15,647.06 apiece, assuming the fines are evenly distributed.

My guess is that the ones causing planes to make unscheduled landings or to leave the tarmac very late, causing passengers to have to miss connecting flights, etc., would get fined more heavily than others. But I don't know how they determine the amounts.

[csziggy]

29. In addition to the fines, they should have to pay costs to the airlines

And to every passenger onboard.

It costs a lot extra for airplanes to make unscheduled stops, so the "unruly passengers" should have to pay for that, at the very least. And they should be liable for the costs to other passengers for missed connections or whatever else causes them additional costs.

[LastLiberal in PalmSprings]

12. Will they let the flight crews throw the passengers off the airplane -- in flight?

The part of "Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade" where Indy throws the German off the Hindenburg comes to mind...

[keithbvadu2]

14. Yes! Fine them BIGLY.

[Auggie]

17. Lower the fine but ban them from air travel permanently

[discntnt_irny_srcsm]

20. Banning them seems a bit harsh.

I suggest they be allowed to travel in baggage in one of these:

[Auggie]

21. LOL

That would work!

[PerceptionManagement]

25. So Boeing Max not withstanding the FAA can act. interesting