Originally Posted by orbitmic

You know that I usually agree with you on most things, but that last sentence has to be an exception. I have already expressed in a number of other threads that in my experience, BA crew tolerate higher levels of alcohol consumption than some other European airlines. I have also mentioned that I know of some such airlines where there is very specific training for crew on identifying pre-intoxication signs, that is, the types of specific behavioural signs that suggest that someone who does not "appear intoxicated" yet will be by even if no more alcohol is served to him/her. By contrast, my understanding of talking to BA crew, including on flights where I have witnessed unpleasant drunkenness-related incidents, is that (at least at the time I spoke to them which was last a bit more than a year ago), BA crew receive no such training and have to rely, instead, on a passenger appearing intoxicated.

This is of crucial importance because typically, alcohol takes about an hour before showing its full effect, which means that by the time one notices intoxication and consequently stops serving alcohol, it is way too late - just consider how much alcohol some passengers can get in an our especially in premium classes where crew are - rightly - often very attentive to our needs and requests.

To clarify, I am not blaming BA crews here - I am blaming BA as an airline which, in my view, potentially endangers its crew and passengers by giving less than optimal training and making its own "zero tolerance policy" more words than reality. At the risk of being controversial, I suspect that there is also a cultural element which means that unfortunately, drunkenness is still considered less socially and culturally unacceptable in the UK than in a number of other countries, and sadly, we have a tendency to "laugh it off" more than its negative effects - from crime and violence on the streets to causing discomfort and worry to other passengers on a plane - should justify.

In short, whilst it may well have been, as you suggest, an accident, I dare say that it is also quite possible that it was not and that instead, it is a situation which BA management being more pro-active in terms of scientific crew training might have avoided.

To the OP, I do think that it must have felt very unpleasant and intrusive to your wife and I really hope that she was ok. At any rate, if this was indeed due to drunkenness, then I would say that this was entirely inexcusable.