In Australia Air Rage is on the Rise
Monday, January, 12th, 2008
In 2007, 64 cases of aggressive or otherwise unruly passengers were reported. This year, however, 279 cases were reported (that’s a more than 400% increase). That despite the fact that the number of air travelers is down by over 3 million passengers compared to ‘07.
What’s causing the anger? Some industry experts point to the trend of customers feeling the effects of the poor state of the airlines. There is a chronic understaffing problem at airports. Charges for extra baggage and expensive fuel surcharges leave passengers with a bad taste in their mouth before they have even boarded their plane. In addition, new security measures and new technology employed by airlines have left passengers confused and frustrated.
The most common fruition of air rage was when passengers became abusive to airline staff members. Alcohol is often part of the problem. Two of the most publicized air rage cases took place in the US and UK- both involved booze.
In England (which has seen a 100% increase in air rage incidents this year), a man became drunk, abused other passengers before trying to open the door while the plane was cruising at 30,000 feet. In the US, a man stripped naked before trying to open the door.
The US has also experienced an increase in incidents, though their numbers have not risen as severely as Australia’s.
Airlines are trying to walk a fine line between allowing customers to voice their disproval and allowing the situation to get out of hand and hurt the security of other passengers. Some people suggest a zero tolerance policy. Any and all aggressive behavior should be lead to a passenger being restrained or barred from the flight. Others suggest that airlines could avoid most problems by having more staff on hand to help customers before frustration sets in.