HWGeeks

I was on Delta 901 on Thursday and a man boarded with maybe 10 bags of alcohol from the duty-free. Something I typically see on this SDQ > JFK flight I personally buy 4 or 5 Hennesy whites whenever I make the trip down.

Almost immediately after I see him walk by me the FA came on and said "Do not open any of the alcohol you purchased from Duty-free, we will inform customs that it is opened and they will take it away from you. If you drink any of your alcohol purchased from the Duty Free you are breaking the law and we will inform the police and wait for them to arrive at the gate in JFK" (Going by memory by basically what she said) This was said while boarding was still going on and then again after the door closed and once more before takeoff.

I do know the FA was not lying about it being against the law to drink your our liquor just thought the part about calling the cops was excessive.

First time I ever heard that announcement before, and it seemed directed at the gentlemen who boarded with the 10 bags of duty-free.

davie355

Is Duty Free exempt from carry-on baggage limits?

As long as you declare and pay applicable duty on imported alcohol, Customs couldn't care less whether you drink or open it onboard. The prohibition of drinking one's own alcohol onboard has nothing to do with Customs.

On a related note, Duty Free is pointless when traveling to the US. US Customs levies duty on goods irrespective of Duty Free status.

flyerCO

1)there is FAA rules that prohibit consuming personal alcohol. However customs could give a hoot. Either it's suitable or it isn't. Drinking some before hand doesn't change that.
2)duty free means no duty was paid in country bought in. You could still have to pay duty at country importing it to.

Often1

Right and wrong.

Right that the issue of drinking one's own booze onboard is a matter of DL's safety & security policy filed with FAA and thus enforceable as a DOT violation (max fine $11,000) and has nothing to do with CBP. As it is a carrier rule, the policy can and does vary by carrier. In the particular case, the larger question is why on earth DL would permit anyone to bring 10 carryons onto an aircraft, whether they contain alcohol or paper towels.

Wrong that duty free is not worth it for importation into the US. While it may be that duty free is rarely a particularly good deal, it is rubbish that CBP imposes a duty on all imported liquor. There is, in fact a variable duty free allowance by both dollar value and alcohol volume.

flyerCO

Not sure the point of the last part. Duty free doesnt pertain to where you're importing it to. It pertains to duty where you bought it. Duty is due in every country upon import, unless under exemption limit, if any.

wetrat0

Interestingly there is an FAA limit of 5 L per person for safety reasons (Hazmat). Source: https://www.faa.gov/about/initiatives/hazmat_safety/

Only 1 L per person is technically "duty free" on entry to the US. However, unless you are carrying an amount that appears to be for commercial use the duty is rarely collected as long as you properly declare the items.

estedman

How does one carry 10 bags? I can't believe they let him on the plane.

HWGeeks

Dude literally had 5 in each hand. I normally have 2 bags but I stuff them in my carry on.

jdrtravel

In any case, this is an obnoxious thing to announce over the PA. If the FA saw the pax opening a bottle, the FA can discreetly handle this by simply telling the pax to put it away. If the pax complies, then the story is over.

Unless the pax is being disruptive or refusing to comply there is absolutely no reason to start talking about calling the police or making other silly (& uninformed) threats.


By the way, given the recent reports about sexual harassment and worse on board, the FA would be doing a lot more to protect pax by announcing that they will call the police on anyone who can't keep their pants zipped and hands to themselves.

wxman22

The only surprise here is there is little point in buying Duty Free if coming to the USA. While there may be no tax, the mark up at the airport is considerable. There is noting in Duty free that one can't find cheaper in the USA and NY.
Sounds to me like the FA may have had an history with this customer. Though it's still obnoxious to announce it that way.
In fact, a point for Delta to consider, is that a quiet sidebar is much more effective, because then the person knows it's directly addressed to them and tehy take more personal repojnsibility.

jdrtravel

Keep in mind that people may purchase items duty free not just for tax purposes but because the actual product is not available or at least easy to find in the US. In this instance, purchasing it duty free in a simple way to get the product home, especially because you can purchase it post-security so you don't have to worry about liquid issues or trying to carefully pack a bottle in checked luggage and hope it makes it home.

JamesBigglesworth

But that's not how things get handled in the US, culturally. It's all about fear, compliance, intimidation, and control. A polite PA announcement of "And we remind our pax who have purchased duty free at some point that you cannot open it while on board." wouldn't be enough. They have to assert control and compliance. They can't help themselves because they honestly don't understand any other way.

jdrtravel

That's certainly true in some places and with some people in the US. That's not my experience on the west coast in large cities, and I'm glad to live here for that and many other reasons.

whimike

Being an American, who has lived American culture my entire life, but also versed in many other cultures, I haven't a clue what you are talking about. Sounds like you are referring to North Korea or Iran.

Often1

Moreover, it is utter rubbish to translate a single incident in which one rogue employee of one business says something which happens to be incorrect.

There was recently a lout in some village in the UK who made an inopportune comment. Perhaps time to rid the place of the Monarchy?