Air Rage: Banned by One Airline, Welcome on Another

If you’re a news junkie like me, you’ve probably noticed a recurring pattern lately: reports of unruly airline passengers choking off-duty flight attendants, trying to open exit doors mid-flight, attempting to breach cockpits, and even broadcasting the word “BOMB” from a personal device and forcing a flight diversion.

According to the Federal Aviation Administration, there have been 687 unruly passenger incident reports in the U.S. so far this year. While that’s not even close to the record-setting 5,973 disturbances reported in 2021, the ongoing wave of incidents making headlines this year is still very unsettling.

In one case, a United Airlines flight was diverted after a passenger allegedly made multiple attempts to breach the cockpit. Just a few days ago, a Frontier passenger allegedly tried to open an exit door mid-flight before reportedly choking an off-duty flight attendant who intervened. Separately, another United flight was forced to divert after a passenger allegedly attempted to open a cabin door at 36,000 feet and assaulted another traveler onboard.

What’s even more unsettling is that even if an unruly passenger is banned from one airline, they can often simply book a flight with another carrier.

But should someone accused of making multiple attempts to breach the cockpit or trying to open a cabin door while in the air really be allowed to board another commercial flight, potentially putting hundreds of lives at risk?

Interestingly, the United Kingdom is currently in the process of attempting to tackle this very issue citing an increase in disruptive behavior during peak travel seasons. Under the newly proposed system, airlines would share a national no-fly list for unruly passengers, which could prevent serious offenders from boarding commercial flights altogether.

Can you imagine being permanently banned from flying commercially for the rest of your life? If you’re a frequent traveler, the mere thought of landing on a national no-fly list could be enough to keep even the most disruptive passengers at their best.

So, being the curious person that I am, I decided to take a closer look at how the United States currently handles unruly airline passengers.

What I found is that the United States does not currently have a nationwide blacklist for unruly airline passengers. Instead, individual airlines maintain their own internal banned passenger lists, meaning someone prohibited from flying with one carrier may still be able to book a flight with another.

It’s not for a lack of trying, though. Congress has considered the idea multiple times, most recently in 2023 when lawmakers introduced the Protection from Abusive Passengers Act, which would have created a national no-fly-style list for violent and disruptive airline passengers. The bill ultimately failed to become law.

Currently, the United States maintains a federal no-fly list tied to national security and terrorism concerns. But unlike the proposed system in the United Kingdom, that list is not intended for disruptive airline passengers or so-called “air rage” incidents.

That said, disruptive passengers can still face serious consequences. Depending on the severity of the incident, they may be removed from flights, permanently banned by specific airlines, fined by the Federal Aviation Administration, arrested, or even face federal criminal charges for interfering with a flight crew or threatening the safety of an aircraft.

Still, the question remains. Is that enough?

Supporters of a shared national blacklist argue that passengers who attempt to breach cockpits, assault crew members, or jeopardize the safety of an aircraft shouldn’t simply be allowed to book another flight with a competing airline.

On the other side of the aisle, some critics say a nationwide blacklist for unruly passengers raises legitimate concerns. For example, who decides when a passenger’s behavior warrants a lifetime ban? Would passengers be able to appeal the decision? And where should the line be drawn between someone having a bad day and someone posing a real threat to safety?

For now, all eyes are on the United Kingdom to see whether a shared national no-fly list for unruly passengers can actually work, and whether other countries, including the United States, eventually decide to follow its lead.