It's an apprehension that assail us all before boarding the plane, especially if we are traveling alone.
Who will I find myself next to?
Will my neighbor be a discreet passenger, friendly and ready to let me pass my slightest need for the toilet?
Or will I face a gruff, who will have this nasty tendency to sprawl on my seat?
Or worse yet, some kind of drunk who is going to cause a scandal on the plane and transform these few hours of travel into a closed door from hell?
It is often said that all the beauty of travel lies in the unknown.
But sometimes, this stranger - sitting next to us - can quickly screw with our system.
In 2023, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) warned of an increase in the number of incivilities during flights.
Fights, attacks against on-board staff... the latest figures showed that one incident had been reported for 568 flights in 2022, compared to one for 835 flights in 2021. If we can mention an increase linked to the end of the Covid crisis and an increase in the number of passengers on planes, the reasons for this incivility seem elsewhere.
In the United States, the Federal Aviation Authority, an agency which reports to the American Department of Transportation, had already warned in 2021 of
“record levels”
of bad behavior, noting at the time numerous altercations linked to the wearing of masks.
Disputes at 10,000 meters altitude
If the figures have fallen significantly in 2023 (again according to the FAA), this level would still have been high for several years.
Even before the pandemic, IATA was observing an upward trend.
But concretely, how does this materialize?
For a long time, the media have reported numerous incidents on board.
Last week, on a JetBlue flight from London to New York, passengers had to band together to detain another who was acting
“erratically and aggressively”
towards his traveling companion and the flight attendants, as the press release recounts. airline press release.
A video of the incident was even posted on the
New York Post
website .
Certain problems arise recurrently, such as alcoholic passengers, or conflicts between seat neighbors.
Another equally vehement argument between two travelers recently made the rounds on social networks.
The cause ?
The tilt of the seat of one of the two passengers, which disturbed the one located just behind her.
In the video, we can see a woman shouting her right to
“put her seat back”.
No increase in incidents at Air France
So, are passengers becoming more and more undisciplined?
Or is it above all an Anglo-Saxon phenomenon?
On the Air France side, we are assured: there is
“no increase in PAXI events (unruly passengers)”
.
The airline even notes
“a drop before summer 2023”
.
The name PAXI here refers to “Unruly or disruptive passengers”, in airline jargon.
The fact remains that while physical violence remains rare, incidents of non-compliance continue to be legion, such as failure to wear a seat belt or consume cigarettes or alcohol purchased at duty-free.
These behaviors can compromise flight safety.
A cigarette can simply cause the device to catch fire.
And alcohol abuse encourages a fight.
For Mizuki Urano, a former Japan Airlines flight attendant, interviewed by CNN, the pandemic marked a
“turning point”
.
Passengers' indiscipline was reinforced after two years of limited social life.
“It has become clear that the increase in unruly passenger behavior is consistent with what the police are seeing in society in general since the Covid pandemic
,” explains John Franklin, head of safety promotion at the European Safety Agency. aviation safety, with our American colleagues.
And the cozy space that the plane represents, with very tight seats and maximum proximity, doesn't help matters.
This antisocial attitude does not seem to be limited to air transport alone.
Bad behavior by tourists abroad regularly makes the headlines.
We still remember these two French tourists who had the idea of stealing a gondola in Venice.
Or even of this man who dared to engrave his name on the Colosseum in Rome.
Some key destinations are seeing a deterioration in the behavior of many travelers, with the latter often damaging cultural sites.
On board planes, safety comes first
Are we therefore condemned to a similar phenomenon on board planes?
We remind you that causing an incident on a plane is not without consequences.
Besides calling law enforcement, airlines rarely forget the passengers who have caused them harm.
They can thus “blacklist” them.
In other words, it will no longer be possible to book on their site or board one of their aircraft.
Because in air transport, we don't mess around with security, no offense to certain (bad) jokers.
Summer 2022, an easyJet flight from London to the Balearic Islands was escorted by a fighter jet after one of its passengers made a false bomb threat on social media.
A few weeks earlier, Transavia had banned for five years a young traveler who had fun sending photos of plane crashes to other passengers on AirDrop.
Both were prosecuted in court.
For those who would like to avoid the slightest misstep, just consult the guide from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGAC)... Or simply use common sense and courtesy.