September 22, 2021 — Tomorrow at 10am eastern, AFA International President Sara Nelson will testify before House Transportation and Infrastructure Subcommittee on Aviation in a hearing titled, “Disruption in the Skies: The Surge in Air Rage and its Effects on Workers, Airlines, and Airports.”
Since January the Federal Aviation Administration has logged:
- 4,284 unruly passenger reports
- 3,123 mask related incidents
- 755 investigations initiated
- 154 enforcement cases
- $1 million plus fines issued
These numbers are staggering and if they continue at this rate may result in more incidents in 2021 than the entire history of commercial aviation. Our union survey found that over 85 percent of all respondents had dealt with unruly passengers in the first half of 2021.The enormity of the problem is reflected in these statistics, and demonstrates the urgency of tackling the problem. But the numbers don’t tell the full story about the impact on frontline workers or just how dangerous this behavior is for aviation safety. There’s much more we can do to stop these events through coordinated actions across aviation and government.
The disruptions in the cabin and failure to comply with crew instruction are a threat to the safety of flight. The safety of every passenger and crewmember onboard is in jeopardy when our duties are interrupted or needless distractions arise.
This is not a ‘new normal’ we can accept. Tune in tomorrow, Sept. 23 at 10am eastern and watch the hearing here >
TESTIMONY BY: Sara Nelson, International President, Association of Flight Attendants-CWA
Teddy Andrews, American Airlines Flight Attendant and APFA member with personal experience of violence
Christopher R. Bidwell, Senior Vice President – Safety, Airports Council International – North America
Lauren Beyer, Vice President, Security & Facilitation, Airlines for America
WHEN: Thursday, September 23, 2021
10:00 a.m. EDT
WHERE: Livestream
