The number of reckless passengers on US flights is too high, says FAA, so it expands a difficult policy on masking

The number of reckless passengers on US flights is too high, says FAA, so it expands a difficult policy on masking

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(CNN) – The agency said Monday the Federal Aviation Administration will extend its stricter enforcement against rioting passengers – specifically targeting those who do not have a masking policy – since December.

“The number of cases we see is still too high, and it tells us that urgent action is still needed,” said FAA Administrator Steve Dickson.

The announcement was made because the Transport Security Administration (TSA) said more people had traveled by plane in the past four days than during any other similar period during the pandemic.

The TSA said it had selected 1,344,128 people at airports on Sunday, meaning 5.2 million have flown since Thursday. On Friday, 1,357,111 passengers were selected, the highest single day since March 15, 2020.

Although the increase in travel is good news for the struggling airline industry, the increase in passengers could mean an increase in incidents during the flight.

The FAA’s Dickson said he had instructed agency officials to consider both civil fines and criminal charges for reports of rioting passengers.

“I have decided to extend the FAA’s zero tolerance policy for passengers as we continue to do everything in our power to address the pandemic,” he said in a statement. “The policy requires that our security inspectors and attorneys take strict enforcement action against any passenger who disrupts or threatens the safety of a flight, with fines ranging from fines to imprisonment.”

The tightened enforcement would expire at the end of the month, but will now apply until the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention lifts its order that the face masks should be worn in mass and commercial transportation methods.

FAA reviews more than 450 rioting passenger reports

The reporting period for the more than 500 complaints of rioting passengers included the time surrounding the riot in Capitol. Earlier, CNN reported that several participants struggled to gain access to flights following the riot, and some were not placed on any flight lists.

The FAA is currently reviewing more than 450 cases and has taken action against rioting passengers in 20 cases.

At least four fines were imposed on passengers under the stricter enforcement policy, the largest of which amounts to $ 27,500.

The agency said individuals fined would likely respond to the agency, and that the final amount the individuals paid had not been disclosed.

The passengers who have been fined so far are accused of, in addition to not wearing masks, assaulting flight attendants, shouting obscenities and not drinking approved alcohol in aircraft.

In June, CNN reported that American Airlines had to temporarily suspend a passenger from its flight after the person refused to wear a face mask.
Other airlines permanently banned passengers for not complying with the guidelines, including Delta, which banned 460 anti-masks.

Although the FAA did not disclose how many cases are being filed against passengers, the agency said about a month ago that it had received reports in all modes of transport that ‘less than 1,000 passengers … are refusing to wear a face mask’.

The president of a major air hostess union who called for the policy to be expanded calls it an important deterrent.

“The patchwork, politically skewed discussion around masks has created confusion and conflict,” said Sara Nelson of the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA. “We do not have time to disregard the federal mask mandate. On an airplane, this behavior endangers everyone and we cannot stand it.”

The FAA fines are separate from those that the TSA can issue under a set of safety regulations.

CNN’s Pete Muntean contributed to this report.

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