All too often, airline employees have to deal with passengers who may have had a little too much to drink. The goal, of course, is to not allow anyone visibly drunk to even board an aircraft. However, if they do manage to board, you ideally want to remove them before takeoff, because an uncooperative passenger…
Continue reading: United Airlines’ New Process For Kicking Off Drunk Passengers
Share your questions, experiences, and thoughts below.
The problem here is the democratization of air travel because the poor, who could never afford to travel before, tend to get violent when they drink. I don’t even feel safe being near a Spirit Airlines boarding gate….
Hmm. If I’m a flight attendant and I want somebody removed, it should be trivial to call one of my colleagues and back me up, even if the colleague wasn’t even there, on the simple basis that teammates stick up for one another. That’s the whole purpose of a team.
In all my years of flying, I’ve never encountered a power tripping UA or DL flight attendant. I’ve encountered some grumpy ones, but they were merely grouchy and unpleasant, not power tripping. The only power tripping flight attendants I’ve come across were on AA and Frontier. I’ll never be flying Frontier again, they can kiss my equity partner ass.
Spirit Airlines is perfectly acceptable to fly. I haven’t flown them in a while but in college, I took a flight and was assigned to a middle seat in the back. However, my window and aisle seat mates were hot svelte blondes. At the time I was years and years away from equity partnership at a top grossing law firm, or I could’ve proposed a … I’ll leave the rest to your imagination
Yes more than one person should make the call because well a small number of flight attendants well are....
If the passenger comes off easily and with no hassle, tell them get a hotel room (on you the passenger) or go home and we will rebook you tomorrow or put on standby.
If the passenger gets argumentative at any point refusal of service and lifetime ban from flying that airline. If the police need to get involve and effect an arrest then put on the US No Fly List.
Why adults cannot control their consumption of booze is beyond me. You're an adult, not an 18 year old away from home for the first time.
Actually, the rich are more likely to get violent when inebriated, since their wealth inherently gives them power over others and they're not accustomed to being told "no".
See, I too can make up BS generalizations.
Sounds like subjective nonsense to me. For deplaning a passenger, there should be an objective cause. Slurring your speech does not make you unfit to fly. Can’t wait for a tired passenger with a sleep impediment to be deplaned.
I think they mean red flag behavior. Red light behavior is something you see in the Netherlands, for example.
Confirmation by another person is good, particularly if the African American nasty United flight attendant wants to throw you out like a recent report. On that report, a passenger asked that FA to stow her cane and purse. That FA tried to get the passenger kicked off the plane.
Do they known how to recognise a stroke ? Someone could have had one drink and suffer from an ischemic episode. And this is during boarding.
I’m unclear how her race is relevant to what happened. Or did you just really want to make sure people knew that it was a *BLACK PERSON* doing something bad?
Portable breathalyzers cost less than $100. You would think that with all the money they make selling alcohol, airlines could afford to put one on each plane.
8 people got cut off on my flight recently. It was a simple as the lead FA talking to the rest of the J FAs and saying “I’m going to cut them off, what do you think”. They replied “I agree, they have been XYZ etc…”
It was simple, easy and efficient. And basically what this post describes.
A lot of drunks pass out quickly once in their seats, and so it may be overkill to dump them off the flight, especially if it is a high revenue guest.
Sometimes less is more.
No huddling whatsoever on LH773 at BKK to MUC on 21 April this week, when the Captain himself went to the back of Eco class on the A380 to remove a drunk passenger who started drinking his own alcohol right after boarding in BKK. Less than 5min later his suitcase was offloaded and police at the gate, for an ontime departure.
It's not just a stroke, it could be medication, dementia, etc.
That said, the FAs are looking for a constellation of behaviors, not only one, so it doesn't seem like there should be any rash decisions made.
Well, until the first rash decision that leads to an errant removal, which will bring all the hellfire of public attention and social media to the episode.
"derek" has a long history of adding RWNJey and racist comments to many stories. "Ignore the troll" seems to be the only option with this one.
I am not speaking as a Physician but, honestly, anybody suffering from a stroke is better off on the ground. Once on the ground it is more likely for someone to notice the situation and get EMT help. Any EMT will be aware.
Your plan is valid if the passenger is truly intoxicated. If this is simply a bias incident and the passenger gets upset, well, that can be expected.
I was threatened with arrest by a Delta cabin attendant because I was standing near the lav in the event my wife needed help. I was told to sit, I returned to my seat. When the same attendant passed with the cart, rear to front, I told passengers to watch their elbows. (That is who I am.) The same cabin attendant did not hear what I said and started something, including a threat of arrest. Upon deplaning, my wife, an attorney, told her off in front of the entire crew.
Never Delta.
Was flying on Allegiant (I know, but we all gotta get where we gotta go) and a woman was literally throwing up at the gate and could barely stand. I was in the first row so I saw here when she boarded, and not even being aware of "red light behavior" I knew this woman should not be on this plane. I quietly pulled a FA aside and told her what I witnessed and that I was worried she was literally sick. Next thing I know 2 FAs are walking up to her seat and chatting with her, and then boom - she is escorted off the plane. I felt kinda bad, but honestly, she was in no shape to be in the air for 3 1/2 hours.
I hope they take into consideration those of us on our 5th or 6th flight of the trip, crossing 14 time zones and spending 2 nights on planes. You don't have to be drunk or on drugs to be glassy eyed, moving slowly, and slow to respond!
Are they sensible about getting their flight attendants a contract any time soon?! Still the lowest paid flight attendants in the industry at legacies and more! AA, DL, Alaska, Southwest all make more! Wouldn’t be shocked if Hawaiian paid more than United at this point. Every two months they are purchasing or shelling out cash for something new but keep their employees the lowest paid and the CEO gives himself a another huge raise.
Someone having a stroke should definitely not be on a plane. They'd want medical assistance as quickly as possible.
Red light behavious in Holland is when the Dutch vape on planes. Which seems to be the norm.
That was a very good move on your part. Drinking and drinking to THAT excess is both optional and hazardous. Good Call.
Reminds me of my Swedish days. I would regularly get sold alcohol at Systembolaget when dead drunk (despite the whole point of having an alcohol monopoly being to prevent that), because one of the cashiers in my local store was very chatty so my "happy mood" would come across as just being conversational, but I once got thrown out of metro for being drunk when I was completely sober but tired and I stumbled when the door I was leaning against opened 😀
How long until Kirby the orange man cuckolding sycophant does charter flights to El Salvador
On a flight on Tuesday evening this new process ejected a boarded passenger. But rather than just escort the passenger off the plane everyone else had to leave the plane rescanntheir boarding pass wait for police and united to escort the offensive passenger in a perp walk and the revised the plane.
And rich people can afford alcohol in the airport. Another reason they are more likely to be drunk...good job Dusty.
I just had a horrible vision -- my husband has mid-stage dementia (very sad). We no longer travel because of his condition. But.....if we did ...... he meets all of the criteria -- "This includes things like moving in slow motion, needing time to respond, losing train of thought, irrational statements, walking awkwardly, stumbling or falling, being unable to sit upright, slurred speech" -- with the exception, of course, of "being glassy-eyed, spilling drinks, and smelling like alcohol." So for those traveling with a person with dementia they would be wise to mention it at time of booking, checking in, at the gate/to the gate agent and flight attendants, when on board, accordingly. Oh, and bring documentation from a doctor -- can't hurt. This day and age you have to cover all bases and the perception by others on the plane can create a scene that I wouldn't want to live through!
United uses the "traffic light" system to identify levels of passenger inebriation, so "red light" behavior is consistent with their training policy.
One sensible reason for drinking alcohol on 'planes or in lounges is to sleep on overnight flights, especially if changing time zones!
"needing time to respond, being glassy-eyed, losing train of thought" would describe me during any of my long-haul travel, so that doesn't seem exactly like fair indicators of intoxication...
United and all airlines should ban alcohol on their flights. Drunken behaviour causes major problems for all passengers.