Air Rage? How often? What is it? Ever seen it?
 

I've been meaning to post this for sveral days, and apologize if I missed a recent discussion on this topic.

Last week, the FAA released a report on Air Rage. I'm fuzzy on the numbers, but the FAA estimated about 300 incidents a year. Flight attendants estimated about 4,000 incidents a year (domestic).

This leads me to a number of questions?

1) What is "air rage"?

I've been pretty pissed before on a plane- I live in MSP, after all. If I sit silently rageful, if that Air Rage? How is this being defined. After having a flight cancelled, delayed, and being lied to about all of the above, missing an important meeting after your 8 hour delay while being treated like veal the entire time, does letting a comment slip to a mean FA that "Your airline sucks! I swear, I will never fly your airline again!" count as air rage if the passenger is buckled in and showing no physical maionfestations of rage?

Or does this require some form of assualt?


2) I have been on probably 300 flights in my life- the vast majority within the past 2 years- I've never seen it.

I know many here who have been on more flights?

Ever seen it?

3) Whose estimate is more correct?

I've never seen it myself. I've seen people be rude, down right fools and jerks, but nothing that I would ever consider a threat to the safety of the pax, employees or flight crew. Never, not even close.. I think its like everything else in the news, you hear the few bad incidents and never all the millions of good things done every day by pax, employees, flight crews etc.. So far to date in CY 01 200K miles and nothing and nothing ever before either

An airline employee might tell you different but that is just my perception.

As for definition of air rage, that it self is up for debate. I think it is when the planes, crew, or pax safety starts to become threatened. I don't think some guy mouthing off b/c he is late or wasn't upgraded is air rage (I'd call it a lack of class or making a fool of himself) unless it becomes a safety issue. Now what is a saftety issue is also debateable.

I, too, think the definition of air rage is a little fuzzy, but I would say it probably has to go beyond bad taste/bad manners.

Like BoSoxFan45 and TrojanHorse, I've never witnessed it myself, either. Once, I came close, though it happened after landing with the plane at the gate. One guy, who had his gear stashed further back in the plane rushed back there as soon as the seat belt light went off, pushing and shoving many of us aside in his haste. One pax took exception to this, and a shoving match ensued. I just sat back down so as not to be in the middle of flying fists had it escalated to that level, but it didn't.

I have often wondered that myself. I have seen a few people freak out. But I am not sure it counts as air rage.

Once on a flight from LHR to AMS, one of the pilots walked down the aisle to use the bathroom, and one guy got really upset. He became quite loud, and worried about who was flying the plane. The first FA joked that the plane was on auto-pilot, and the guy really ffreaked. They had to have a FA stand and talk to him for the whole flight. They pulled a large almost empty bottle of vodka off him, so I guess he was pretty drunk.

I am just glad I was not sitting next to him.

Just once several years ago when two pax came to blows over a FC seat mistakenly assigned to both of 'em, and an FA unfortunately took an "accidental" shot in the face when she tried to interevene and break it up! http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/frown.gif

Please also see:

http://www.flyertalk.com/travel/fttr...ML/001940.html

http://www.flyertalk.com/travel/fttr...ML/001087.html

I have never seen air-rage except for the incident that was caught on video of the NRT bound 747 that had to land in Alaska. However, on a flight from SFO-ORD last year, one PAX was offended and belittled by an FA after he simply asked a question regarding an FAA delay. The FA turned around and commented that "the 80 year old man should be able to take better care of himself". Everyone around her (including myself) knew that this comment was directed at the passenger who looked to be somewhat younger. His wife proceeded to make a statement to that FA, and then the man made his statement. I turned around and told the FA that I heard the comment, and thought she should apologize. The passenger's question was legitimate, and he was actually quite on top of things, so there was no reason for the comment. The rest of the passengers (including another younger FA who heard the comment) was quite surprised that one could be that low.

Erik.

I am amazed that I am the only one who has seen such an incident. It was a short hop from STL to ORD. A slightly drunk passenger on a delayed flight began to argue with a FA and ended up standing up, getting in her face, and pushing her backwards in the aisle. Once the situation got physical, the FA simply walked away, spoke to the cockpit and sat down until the plane landed.

Once the plane pulled into the gate, the pilot came on the loudspeaker and told the passengers that it would be a few minutes until the door would be opened at which time I saw (from my First Class seat) two uniformed US Marshals come on to the plane and take the rowdy passenger off in handcuffs.

These incidents do happen and they are often dealt with swiftly and decisively.

Hope the story gives you a good example.

I completely agree that violent, intimidating, or abusive behavior -- in an airplane or anywhere else -- is intolerable, and the violator should be punished swiftly and severely.

But I'm a little miffed off about this "air rage" campaign that the airlines and their employees seem to be on. The airlines narrow our seats, take away our leg room, add seats to the airplane so we have to walk sideways like crabs to get through the aisles, make us all fight for limited overhead space, pump potentially obnoxious alcoholics with several drinks in order to maximize their profit margins, give us little or no food on long trips -- and then they have the nerve to complain to the media and the FAA that their customers aren't giving THEM good service!

When I was in college in Boston I was travelling back home for a long-weekend at the same time as a snowstorm was hitting the area. Logan airport looked like Saigon circa April 1975. I saw one guy who was irate lean across the Continental counter and grab a CSR buy the lapels and started shaking her. The cops showed up immediately, handcuffed the guy and took him away.

I think this incident qualifies.

I think air rage can occur w/o necessarily having safety compromised. Example I saw did not even involve alcohol. A nicely dressed man and his wife on an AA flight out of DFW refused to budge from seat assignments they had before we switched to different equipment, where they would not be sitting together with their new seat assignments. I'm sure if they would have asked politely that someone would have switched their seats, but they basically told in turn the pax, the FA and the pilot to "Go to Hell". The pilot announced a delay and about 15 minutes later a marshall came on the plane to escort them off.

Yes, but if you choose to count every drunk that's not permitted to board and every time an impatient loudmouth type curses out a CSR/checkin agent...well... sadly, my count will go up considerably! http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/frown.gif I was only counting "physical" air rage! :eek:

On Wednesday of this week, UA SFO-SEA, we were landing, gear down, and the guy in front of me gets up to use the head. We had to do a go-around and some of the pax made comments to the guy who used the head when he came back. That guy looked like he could have been insane, seriously, so I kept my thoughts to myself. No "rage" really ever ensued but I think it came close.

haven't really seen any rage of the physical type. have flown a lot and have seen obnoxus? pax. most of them at gate or club making noise. i don't blame people who aren't ffers who panic & make themselves upset when the plane is delayed & they may miss a connection. also think that fa's should have a sense of humor.

Three years ago I had the "pleasure" of a 7 hour trip from LGA to DTW when the NW 757 was diverted to Flint (I think, or was it Saginaw?)due to a sleet storm at DTW. They keep us informed but could not let anyone off the plane as the airport was not equiped for such a large plane. I, luckily was in FC so I at least had a little room to spread out, they put a movie on, and did what they could do, but they then started running out of everything. Across the aisle from me was a CEO type that must have been used to getting his own way -- he really threw a "tizzy fit" yelling at the FA and eventually the captain. He apparently thought the NW was doing this just to spite him! It did not come to blows, but it came real close. There apparently were other "incidents" in back. In any case when we got to DTW the plane was met by three uniformed officers who escorted several of the passengers, including the CEO, off the plane. I just got to spend the night in a Detroit motel til I could get out the next AM -- that was penalty enough for me!

[This message has been edited by trd (edited 07-13-2001).]

Here's a case of air rage that took place even BEFORE the door closed. My CO flight between EWR-ATL was delayed a few minutes yesterday while the captain escorted a couple of foul-mouthed young passengers off the aircraft to the cheers of the front section of coach shortly after completion of the boarding process. The pilot apologized for the slight delay, explained that the individuals "really showed their true colors in the jetway", and got us to Hartsfield on time.