expert7700

Heard a new one on my flight today, on a full 5-hour -800 series.

"folks you may have heard about peanut allergies, don't worry, we don't have one of those on board. We do, however, have a liquor allergy onboard. Therefore no liquor will be served to anyone on this flight"

I'm sure there were definitely some bummed out passengers today: bachelor parties and business select pax. Although I don't drink, I would have made an exception today once it became apparent that we were seated in front of a child suffering from tourette's syndrome (barking outbursts) the entire flight.

poser

They really did that ?

As I understand liquor "allergies" are just that the person is allergic to something in the liquor and most people have to psychically drink a lot to have a reaction.

LegalTender

I'd have made an exception, as well.

The story goes that non-drinker Bob Costas back in the 80's made a similar exception when "Dapper Don" John Gotti bought his table a round at a Chicago Italian eatery.

Gotti stood up from his table holding his glass in salute: "Bob Costas, sportscaster!"

Costas rose from his party and returned: "John Gotti, reputed mob boss!"

Laughter ensued.

InkUnderNails

I know a lot of things but I am not omniscient, so I did what anyone else that was curious would do, I Googled it.

A lot of people have alcohol intolerance which resembles an allergy, but the alcohol must be consumed. There is another condition call Asian Flush (because it occurs primarily among this ethnic group and not a slur) that is an intolerance to alcohol because of a genetic condition. It is quite rare and also requires direct contact or consumption.

There are others that can not tolerate the fumes of alcohol. My wife is one. She has to hold her breath or have ventilation in the room when getting an injections because when she smells the alcohol she will pass out. It is not truly an allergy but a reaction to the VOC's in the alcohol. Her reaction is always to wood alcohol. She is not bothered at all by the fumes of grain alcohol.

Bottom line, yes, but it is very rare.

That said, our policy is to avoid places where the problem may occur, as it is with all of our allergies. To place oneself in an enclosed environment with 180 people and expect all of them to bend their desires to your condition, particularly when the consumption of alcohol is one very common activity on a plane trip of 5 hours, is asking great tolerance of your fellow passengers.

will2288

Thanks for your insights and explanations. I tend to agree with your conclusion.

Can this condition be so extreme that someone drinking twenty rows away could cause an issue? If so, that must make normal life on the ground very difficult. Perhaps the air circulation on a plane makes the situation different.


These situations always bring up the question of how the needs of a few outweigh the needs/wants of the rest of the plane. Most people think that reasonable peanut restrictions are okay, as the effects can be potentially deadly.

While drinking alcohol is certainly a want, not a need, I think it is asking a lot to tell almost two hundred people not to drink unless the danger is very extreme. I know I would be disappointed if I wasn't allowed to drink on a flight, especially on long-haul J/F.

- Could a restaurant be expected to not serve alcohol if someone has this condition?

- Should an airline not be allowed to serve alcohol if it only causes minor discomfort, or only if the effect is severe? What if the reason is only moral/religious?

- What if someone is allergic to a medicine that someone must take during flight? Whose needs come first?

Often1

Just WN being WN. BTW, the peanut thing is just as stupid. Not as though there aren't a bunch of people who brought their own peanut product onboard or left something with peanut oil on it in the seatback pocket (which is likely cleaned about every 90 days).

toomanybooks

I don't think "Asian Flush" is all that rare. I have a bunch of Asian friends who exhibit it when drinking. Wikipedia seems to agree.

I trained as a chemist and I seriously doubt that ethanol fumes from a mixed drink or beer can waft 10 feet and be inhaled by someone with an allergy and cause problems. Come on.

Ink, "wood alcohol" is methanol, CH3OH. Bad stuff, causes blindness among other things. Would not be in drinks or vaccinations.

ursine1

My understanding is that true severe alcohol allergies are very, very rare, and that generally the alcohol has to be ingested in order to trigger a significant reaction. While I certainly understand that it must be very difficult to live with such a condition, I'm amazed at the excessive lengths to which some people will go, using their allergy as justification for requiring the unnecessary inconvenience of others.

InkUnderNails

I know that as it is the methanol that bothers my wife. You are correct about the distance. If she is three or four feet away it does not bother her. And it is not in the injection, it is on the swab used to sterilize the spot of the injection. As to the Asian flush you are correct, it is unusual among the general population but not so rare among Asians. I should have been more specific and avoided the term "quite rare."

toomanybooks

Injection swabs are are normally primarily isopropyl alcohol, (CH3)2CHOH, I believe. Same as rubbing alcohol. It has a stronger aroma than methanol, ethanol, etc. Methanol is used mostly in industrial applications.

joshua362

In today's blame everybody but myself society, I wouldn't be surprised if a recovering alcoholic and/or their sponsor pulled a fast one to "lessen the temptation" while on board.

Just my guess. I've been around enough "recovering" alcoholics whose attitude is "if I can't handle it, no one else can handle it either".

Really surprised WN let that one go given the potential lost revenue on a 5hr flight. Something just not right here.

Eemraldskies

Never, ever have I heard of this. Peanut allergy - yes, no peanuts served. I'd write to HQ for an explanation on this one (be sure and mention date and flight number) and I'm certainly going to ask my inflight supervisors.

Eemraldskies

Expert7700 are you sure the FA wasn't joking around and you missed the punch line? I've been asking around and my fellow FA's have never heard of such a thing. One even said he was allergic to alcohol but could still serve it.

expert7700

I was expecting a punchline too.

I was observing from Row 1 and didn't see any alcohol served. The allergy announcement specifically stated liquor, not alcohol in general, so that did leave me curious if beer and wine were still somehow OK. The FA up front made the announcement before starting snack service and then seemed to purposely leave out the cocktails/beer/wine can be purchased for $5 or with a valid coupon. We didn't see any handhelds going around for payment either.

I did a brief (slow wifi onboard) google which seemed to indicate that it was a valid medical condition. I should have approached a FA for more details on the flight. Instead I just chocked it up to "wow, that's gotta be very rare".

I'll send the flight details to one of my SW contacts to see if they have more info.

drooley

I tend to think that this may have been the real story. If the flight was going in or out of PHX this month, I would say there was a good chance that Josh Hamilton (although, I doubt he would fly WN), formerly of the Texas Rangers, now with the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, was on the flight.

I have to be honest, Mr. drooley would not be happy with this situation. I doubt that Herb Kelleher would go for it, either.

I hope this person never flies into LAS...there may be a mutiny on the plane.