The Causes Of Air Rage
AD Aerospace Ltd – News Release – Date: 13-04-99
The majority of air rage incidents over the past 10 years have one ingredient in common - alcohol.
Most airline passengers are either going on or coming from a holiday; or are going away to or coming back from business appointments. The holiday makers are often in the party mood, in good spirits, and want to continue partying on board. The business man/woman is often tired and stressed, and in ‘need’ of a stiff drink.
In either situation we are mixing up a dangerous cocktail.
AIR RAGE COCKTAILS
No. 1
Try "The Holidaymaker"
Ingredients:
1 holidaymaker
Generous helping of party spirits
Copious amount of alcohol
Method:
Place in warm, cramped, claustrophobic area. Restrict movement.
Heat, but prevent from smoking.
Add a fear of flying, and introduce other passengers.
Mix thoroughly,
and bring to the boil.
AIR RAGE COCKTAIL - No. 2
"The Businessperson"
Ingredients:
1 businessman or woman
Large amount of stress
Very short fuse
Abundance of alcohol
Method:
Instil feelings of self-importance
- create by excessive waiting-on, and serving every whim.
Increase pressure and stress, whilst reducing control.
Stir up thoroughly until an explosion occurs.
(For extra strength, add a four-hour delay).
They are true molotov cocktails just waiting to explode, and when looked at in this way, it’s a wonder that there aren’t more incidences of Air Rage.
The vast majority of people can deal with the uncomfortable aspects of flying, but when under the influence of alcohol, some people become volatile. After a drink or two, most of us have been known to say a little bit more than is necessary, we have been known to exaggerate ideas, and movements, and we can get a little bit more irate. Some people, thankfully only a minority, become violent.
So how do we deal with Air Rage?
Airlines could provide larger, more spacious seats, with more leg room and wider aisles, and they could let the passengers smoke again.
These solutions are not realistic, in fact they are totally unfeasible, but airlines can – and are beginning to - limit the amount of alcohol that passengers drink on board, and can refuse admittance onto an aircraft if they turn up at the gate drunk.
The airlines could learn from other places where alcohol is served over long periods - a nightclub, for example – and could employ bouncers instead of flight-attendants (who perhaps are not as well known for their cheery smiles, politeness and willingness to serve).
This may seem extreme, but the problems seen in flight are similar to the problems seen in city centres all over the world on a Friday night. Only in these instances, the problems occur at 35,000 feet, in congested airspace, and could have a life threatening effect on 200 – 300 other passengers. Unlike the Friday night reveller, the air rage assailant can not easily be thrown out of the door.
In order to address the problem of alcohol-induced violence and aggression, most of the larger towns and cities in the UK have installed CCTV cameras in strategic areas The installation has been widely publicised and it has proved a strong deterrent to criminal behaviour. AD Aerospace are suggesting that airlines follow a similar path.
FlightVu Witness is a system of covert CCTV cameras fitted throughout the passenger cabins of an airliner which are connected to a state of the art digital video recorder. The cameras will work to deter violent or disruptive passengers, whilst the video images, courtroom proven, can be used in the prosecution process.
AD Aerospace Ltd is a Civil Aviation Authority A-1 Designer and Manufacturer of Video Systems, a JAR-145 maintenance organisation, and hold ISO9001 approval.
Written by: Vanessa Riding, Marketing Manager, AD Aerospace.
Contacts:
Managing Director: Mr. Mike Horne mhorne@ad-aero.com
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