Addressing Unruly Airline Passengers

October 19, 2021

Addressing Unruly Airline Passengers

As airline passengers have returned to flying in increasing

numbers following the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID19)-related drop in ridership during 2020, the number of

reported unruly passenger incidents has increased

substantially. Objections to mask requirements and

excessive alcohol consumption have been cited as key

contributors to the rise in incidents. An uptick in highprofile schedule disruptions as airlines adjust to meet

growing air travel demand is another possible factor. The

117th Congress has raised concerns regarding unruly

passenger conduct at oversight hearings and through

Member correspondence with executive branch agencies; it

has not passed related legislation.

Incidents Onboard Aircraft

In the first nine months of 2021, the Federal Aviation

Administration (FAA) received more than 4,000 reports of

unruly behavior onboard aircraft, over 3,000 of which have

been described as mask-related incidents. FAA has initiated

more than 800 investigations of unruly passenger conduct

in the first nine months of 2021, more than a five-fold

annualized increase compared to recent years in which

annual totals were below 200 (see Figure 1).

Figure 1. Investigations of Unruly Passenger Conduct

Source: Federal Aviation Administration.

Note: Annual data, except 2021 data through September.

A July 2021 labor union survey of almost 5,000 flight

attendants found that 85% experienced unruly passenger

behavior during the first half of 2021, including verbal

abuse; racist, sexist, and homophobic slurs; threats; and

physical violence. More than half experienced five or more

such incidents, and 17% of respondents reported being

involved in physical altercations. Law enforcement was

reportedly informed of about one-third of verbal incidents

and about 60% of physical altercations.

Incidents at Airports

Unruly behavior by airline passengers has not been limited

to airplanes. The Transportation Security Administration

(TSA) has documented more than 60 cases of passengers

assaulting screeners since the pandemic began in March

2020. In January 2021, President Biden imposed a federal

mask mandate for domestic and international travel that

remains in effect. The mandate requires masks to be worn,

in compliance with Centers for Disease Control and

Prevention guidelines, in airport terminals as well as

onboard commercial aircraft. TSA is charged with

enforcing these rules, and passengers refusing to comply

may face TSA-imposed fines of $500 to $1,000 for first

offenses and up to $3,000 for repeat offenses. It is unclear if

any incidents involving TSA agents are tied to the mask

mandate, but it does appear that some altercations at

airports have involved confrontations about masking.

Threats to and assaults on airline customer service agents

are not new, and it is difficult to ascertain whether the

number of such incidents has been rising. A 2019

Government Accountability Office (GAO) survey of 104

airline customer service agents found that almost all had

experienced verbal harassment, about 44% had been

threatened verbally, about 21% had experienced an

attempted physical assault, and about 10% reported being

physically assaulted on the job over the course of the year

prior to the survey.

Government and Industry Response

In the first nine months of 2021, FAA issued more than $1

million in airline passenger fines, averaging more than

$15,000 each. While individual airlines keep lists to bar

passengers from future flights for egregious violations of

their contract-of-carriage terms, including unruly behavior,

this information is not available publicly and is not shared

with other airlines. The airline industry has indicated that

there may be both operational and legal barriers to sharing

these lists among airlines. The federal government

generally does not bar individuals from flying unless they

pose a clear terrorist threat to aviation, in which case they

may be placed on the “no fly” list maintained by the

Terrorist Screening Center and checked by TSA.

Applicable Statutes and Regulations

FAA regulations prohibit interference with flight and cabin

crew members. Specifically, 14 C.F.R. §§91.11, 121.580,

and 135.120 state that “no person may assault, threaten,

intimidate, or interfere with a crewmember in the

performance of the crewmember’s duties aboard an aircraft

being operated.” 49 U.S.C. §46318 gives FAA express

authority to fine individuals who assault or threaten crew

members or any other individual onboard an aircraft or who

take any action that poses an imminent threat to the aircraft

or people onboard. Language in the FAA Reauthorization

Act of 2018 (P.L. 115-254) increased the maximum civil

penalty for such violations from $25,000 to $35,000. This

penalty is adjusted annually for inflation, and effective May

3, 2021, was set at $36,948 per violation. FAA notes that

one incident could result in multiple violations. P.L. 115254 also expanded the scope of the statute to include sexual

assault in addition to physical assault.

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Addressing Unruly Airline Passengers

Furthermore, 49 U.S.C. §46504 authorizes criminal

penalties, including fines and imprisonment up to 20 years,

for assaulting or intimidating pilots or flight attendants and

thereby interfering with the performance of their official

duties. Stiffer penalties are available when the prohibited

conduct involves use of a dangerous weapon. It is up to the

Department of Justice (DOJ) to prosecute disruptive or

violent passengers. While FAA’s enforcement actions have

increased over the past year, few of these cases have

historically led to criminal prosecutions. The criminal

statute generally applies to all persons aboard all aircraft in

flight in U.S. airspace, U.S.-flag aircraft and certain other

aircraft with business ties to the United States in flight

anywhere in the world, and in flight foreign-registered

aircraft directly inbound to or departing from the United

States. Aircraft are generally considered to be in flight from

the moment all external doors are closed following

boarding until the moment when one such door is opened to

disembark passengers (see 49 U.S.C. §46501).

Regarding incidents at commercial airports in the United

States, 49 U.S.C. §46503 establishes criminal penalties,

including fines and imprisonment up to 10 years, for

assaults against federal, airport, or air carrier employees

with security duties, when the assault interferes with these

duties. As with Section 46504, additional penalties are

available for prohibited conduct involving a dangerous

weapon. Depending on circumstances, Section 46503 may

encompass incidents directed at airline and airport

employees, including airline customer service agents,

airport security contractors, and airport law enforcement

officers, as well as TSA screeners. In 2018, it was revealed

that TSA maintains a list of passengers who have assaulted

screeners or who have otherwise attempted to circumvent

security screening. The list, referred to as the “95 list,” has

been described by TSA as a situational awareness tool.

According to TSA, being placed on this list does not impact

whether a passenger will undergo enhanced screening or be

denied boarding. TSA relies on separate lists to identify

individuals with suspected ties to terrorism who are to be

automatically selected for enhanced security screening and

a smaller “no fly” list of individuals who are to be denied

boarding based on terrorism threat assessments.

Informing and Educating Flyers

In response to growing concerns over unruly passengers,

FAA launched the “Zero Tolerance for Unruly and

Dangerous Behavior Toolkit” in 2021, which includes

airport signage, Internet-based messaging, and public

service announcements aimed at increasing awareness

about enforcement actions to deter unruly behavior (see

Figure 2).

Airline Training

49 U.S.C §44734 requires airline flight attendant training to

include specific training on serving alcohol to passengers,

recognizing intoxicated passengers, dealing with disruptive

passengers, and recognizing and responding to potential

human trafficking victims. It also requires situational

training “on the proper method for dealing with intoxicated

passengers who act in a belligerent manner.”

Figure 2. Digital Signage from FAA’s 2021

Public Education Campaign

Source: Federal Aviation Administration.

Additionally, 49 U.S.C. §44918 mandates that air carriers

provide a training program for flight and cabin crew

primarily aimed at protecting and defending against

terrorist threats. This training must cover recognition of

suspicious activities, crew communication and

coordination, self-defense, and situational training exercises

regarding various threat conditions. The statute also

requires TSA to offer, free of charge, voluntary advanced

self-defense training to airline flight and cabin crew

members that includes training in techniques to deter a

passenger who might present a threat; self-defense; and

methods to subdue an attacker. This training was paused

due to the pandemic, but resumed in summer 2021.

Congressional Interest

Some Members of Congress have expressed interest in

additional legislative measures to hold disruptive

passengers more accountable for their actions and to better

equip airline employees with tools and training to handle

unruly passengers. H.R. 5357 would mandate a GAO study

of airline procedures, policies, and training for handling

unruly passengers, including methods to physically restrain

them, and would order FAA to develop best practices to

mitigate the impacts of unruly passenger incidents based on

the GAO findings.

At a September 23, 2021, House Aviation Subcommittee

hearing, some Members urged action to curb or ban “to go”

alcohol sales at airports, which, they argue, enable

passengers to sneak alcoholic beverages onboard aircraft in

violation of FAA regulations and contribute to alcoholfueled air rage. Additionally, some Members of Congress

have urged DOJ to step up criminal prosecutions, arguing

that civil penalties alone appear to be failing to deter unruly

behavior. A more sweeping proposal involves creating a

federal government list to ban individuals involved in air

rage incidents from airline flights for a period of time. As

most of these cases have resulted in civil rather than

criminal penalties and many may be pending adjudication, a

federally imposed restriction on flying might face legal

challenges.

Bart Elias, Specialist in Aviation Policy

IF11949

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Addressing Unruly Airline Passengers

Disclaimer

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