2 hours ago, dmwalker said:

Don't these all exist now? Would you make them more severe?

Well, I don't know, actually.  How severe are the punishments?

How well publicized are the prosecutions and penalties?

If people know that if they misbehave they will incur severe punishment, then 99% of folks will behave.

You're always going to have that 1% of the population who are criminals, sociopaths, and psychopaths and the only thing you can do to stop their rampages is lock them up.

I am fervently against laws that punish me and/or restrict my freedoms because of the actions of a few criminals.  There is a disturbingly prevalent philosophy that society must do everything it can to avoid any suffering and make everyone totally safe all the time.  It won't work.

"He who would trade liberty for some temporary security, deserves neither liberty nor security" - Benjamin Franklin

Dave

Edited March 29, 20233 yr by dave2013

Quote

 

It has been reported in the press that 500 people have been arrested while drunk on a plane at British airports in the last three years.

For many people a holiday begins once cases have been checked in, and what is the harm in that?

It is clear that drunkenness has become an issue. The government has been asked to take steps to address licencing in airports, especially as the airport bars are currently exempt from certain restrictions.

 

What are the alcohol laws at airports?

Regular licensing laws do not apply at airport bars located on the airside of security.

In November 2018 the government consulted on a proposal that these bars be subject to the same licensing rules as bars outside of airports. As yet, however, no new legislation has been introduced.

 

Could I go to prison?

The simple answer is yes. The courts have said that being drunk on an aircraft will usually result in an immediate custodial sentence. This will apply even when someone is of previous good character. To commit an offence of being drunk on an aircraft a person simply has to be drunk. They do not also have to be disruptive. The offence can be dealt with at the Crown Court and carries up to 2 years imprisonment. The same penalty applies to people acting in a disruptive manner on an aircraft or endangering the safety of an aircraft.

 

 

https://jfhcrime.co.uk/drunk-on-a-plane/

Edited March 29, 20233 yr by martin-w

39 minutes ago, martin-w said:

 

Mostly booze. Alcohol is cheap and easily available. Many young people seem to think its cool to get drunk and do stupid things these days, hence the infamous groups of British youths who end up in places like Spain causing mayhem. Many young Brits admit that the first time they got drunk was in Spain on holiday. 

Perhaps it depends somewhat on country, but the trend seems to be the opposite, with younger generations drinking less.

https://globalnews.ca/news/9411516/alcohol-consumption-decline-gen-z/

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/b-c-bars-go-alcohol-free-1.6790661

I suspect there's more to the problem on aircraft than just alcohol (me first attitudes combined with binge drinking, as one possibility). Maybe banning or more heavily restricting booze could be a quick fix, but prohibition doesn't have a good track record. Where there's a will, there's a way.

38 minutes ago, dave2013 said:

How severe are the punishments?

We know how severe the punishments could be but we never seem to hear what punishments are in actual cases. There must be some extenuating circumstances but I wonder if anyone has ever  received anywhere close to the maximum.

I think I need a drink!   🍸

On 3/29/2023 at 7:39 PM, charliearon said:

I think I need a drink!   🍸

 

Try Kombucha, its great for your gut microbiome. 

On 3/29/2023 at 10:59 AM, dmwalker said:

We know how severe the punishments could be but we never seem to hear what punishments are in actual cases.

Punishments and fines always seem to be inversely proportional to the person's net worth.

Noel

Edited March 31, 20233 yr by birdguy

1 hour ago, birdguy said:

Punishments and fines seem to be inversely proportional to the person's new worth.

Here is some information about actual punishments. Just quickly scanning the list, the longest jail term i saw was 3 years and the highest fine was $172,000.

Something to keep in mind on your next flight is that one passenger who photographed a man urinating on the seat in front of him was upgraded to first class for the remainder of the flight, had her baggage fees waived and was given a $200 voucher:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_air_rage_incidents 

Edited March 31, 20233 yr by dmwalker