6 days ago

Abusive air passengers could be put on a national ban list and prevented from flying with any airline under a new government proposal.

The scheme would allow airlines to share information on disruptive passengers and potentially restrict their access to flights.

Rowdy, problematic and drunken behaviour spikes during the busy summer travel period. Currently, if a passenger is banned by one airline, they can potentially book with another.

"Everyone should be able to enjoy a pint at the airport, but antisocial behaviour on flights is totally unacceptable," a government source told the BBC. "It threatens the safety of passengers and crew, and disrupts hard-earned holidays."

Officials from the Department for Transport will be meeting with airlines this month to discuss how the proposal could work.

The national database could be co-operatively managed by the government and the airline industry.

If implemented, the move would not require any changes in current law, though it is not clear how the plan would work under current data protection - or GDPR - rules.

At the moment sharing of passenger details is not allowed under GDPR, so a disruptive passenger, if banned from one flight, could book with another.

"There are already tough laws in place to deal with offences committed on flights, but we are exploring with industry how we can better address this issue, ensuring we crack down on people who persistently cause chaos," the government source added.

"Everyone should be able to fly without fuss."

The issue of disruptive passengers has been a concern for airlines for some time, with criminal prosecutions used in severe cases.

In April, a court heard that drunk passenger Stephen Blofield, 61, became so abusive that the Ryanair pilot was forced to abort his first landing on a flight from Krakow to Bristol airport in November last year. Blofield was jailed for 10 months.

Jet2 chief operations officer Phil Ward said the family-friendly airline took a "zero-tolerance approach to disruptive passenger behaviour" and did not hesitate in banning poorly-behaved passengers for life.

"We would support a government plan for a formal scheme to share information on disruptive passengers across airlines and have been lobbying for this for some time," Ward said.

"The creation of a national database will mean that, as well as being banned from flying with us, disruptive passengers can also be banned from flying with other UK airlines. We look forward to meeting with the government to discuss further."

Airlines UK, which represents the airline industry, welcomed the idea and said it would work with the government on developing the proposal.

"Additional measures for the most serious cases of disruption, including the creation of a national ban list, is an important next step ensuring a tiny minority of passengers cannot disrupt air travel for the majority," a spokesperson said.