Fractious flyers the fastest-growing safety, security risk

Unruly passengers are the fastest growing security and safety risk to air travel, experts warn, as infringement ­notices on travellers rise.

No smoking please, and fasten seatbelts, or wear a fine.

Australia’s aviation safety watchdog has slapped infringement ­notices on scores of travellers for offences including smoking in the toilet, disregarding crew instructions and disorderly behaviour, ­reigniting debate about how best to deter disruptive behaviour in planes.

Of 135 infringement notices in 2016-17, the Civil Aviation Safety Authority said 71 were for passenger offences. This compares to 66 of 132 notices for the previous year.

The 2016-17 infringements include 18 for smoking in the plane toilet (which carries a $900 fine), one for smoking in the cabin, 33 for ­offensive and disorderly ­behaviour and four for failing to wear a seatbelt.

Joseph Wheeler, principal of aerospace law firm IALPG and nat­ional head of aviation law for Maurice Blackburn, said unruly passengers were “the fastest growing security and safety risk to air travel”.

The peak body for the world’s airlines, the International Air Transport Association, estimates that in 2015 there was one unruly passenger incident for every 1205 flights, which were most commonly verbal. The association has been pushing for better enforcement action to be taken against unruly passengers.

Mr Wheeler said administrative fines from CASA were useful but “they are not well known about, and thus not a sufficient ­deterrent”. “There are moves ­internationally to introduce greater education at airports about zero tolerance for disorderly and disruptive conduct on board, as well as a push for on the spot fines to be made payable at airports rather than following up with a lengthy administrative infringement notice process, as is currently the case,” Mr Wheeler said.

“We see the signs at hospitals and other public venues but abuse to service providers who are there to help us is never acceptable, and some people just don’t seem to get it that means on your flight to holiday climes, as well as on the ground.”

Earlier this year, Qantas boss Alan Joyce said it was important to send a message that disruptive behaviour on flights is “not ­acceptable”.

On smoking, a Qantas spokesman said “given the declining rates of smoking in the community generally, passengers found to be smoking on board is an increasingly rare occurrence”.

“We take a zero tolerance approach to such incidents,” the spokesman said.

Australian Institute of Criminology researcher Susan ­Goldsmid said that while there were no national statistics on unruly passengers, Australian airlines reported they represent a small proportion of passengers that fly with them each year.

“Gender, age, ethnic background and even whether the passenger is flying economy, business or first class does not tend to predict whether they are likely to become unruly,” Dr Goldsmid said.

“Unruly passenger incidents are more likely to occur on flights headed to holiday destinations, or on flights where more passengers are travelling for leisure rather than business.”

Dr Goldsmid said airlines put a “heavy” emphasis on safe and ­secure air travel.

She said they worked closely with each other, CASA and state and federal police to ensure problem passengers were dealt with appropriately.

The institute has previously published work noting that airlines look to avenues of legal ­recourse to recover the cost where there is a diversion because of an unruly passenger.