American Airline’s self serve bar at its LAX Flagship lounge (Photo: Lounge Buddy)
It happened again yesterday. As I was putting this TravelSkills post together, yet another boozed up traveler described as “uncooperative and combative” was taken into custody at LAX and was dragged away “kicking and screaming.”
Headline from today’s LATimes.com
The US Federal Aviation Adminstration (FAA) deals with around 150 air rage incidents every year and over the past 20 years has had to take action against more than 4,000 passengers. Britain’s Civil Aviation Authority reported 114 air rage incidents (many fueled by alcohol) in the UK in 2014, up from 85 in 2013, 47 in 2012 and 39 in 2011 according to the Daily Mail.
It’s become so bad that the British Air Transport Association is now putting pressure on airport sales of booze. “Passengers are responsible for their own behaviour, but airport bars and duty free shops can play their part by making sure they sell alcohol responsibly,” said Nathan Stower, the association’s CEO, in The Telegraph.
As incidents like this increase, I’m wondering if we’ll soon see efforts to cut back on the “open bar” concept at airport lounges, because it seems that many of these incidents begin at the airport, and then play out on board.
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I also wonder what effect restrictions on free-flowing airport booze may have on the burgeoning business of airport lounges.
To help understand, I asked Tyler Dikman, the founder of the popular Lounge Buddy app about this. Here’s our Q&A.
Q: Are there regions where “open bar” is more prevalent/less prevalent or illegal?
LoungeBuddy: In some parts of the world, where alcohol consumption is not the accepted norm due to religious reasons, you may find far fewer open bars at airport lounges, or even a complete ban on alcohol sales and distribution. In general, most lounges around the world feature open bars with unlimited well drinks. Self-serve open bars are typically found in Europe and Asia, where high-end lounges are more prevalent, and there is less stigma against drinking. International airlines that operate airport lounges in the US, such as British Airways and Emirates, continue to provide self-serve open bars. While virtually all US airline lounges now have open bars, only a select few feature self-serve bars, such as the United Global First Lounges and American Airlines Flagship Lounges.
Bartenders on duty at Delta’s Sky Club in Atlanta (Photo: Chris McGinnis)
Q: Do you think that airport clubs may resort to more controlled “bartender only” drinks? Why or why not?
Internationally, we actually see the opposite. Upscale lounges such as the newly renovated The Wing First Class Lounge at HKG now feature a self-serve champagne bar. We see a continued liberalization of the self-serve alcohol policy across Europe and Asia, as well as Australia. In the US, domestic lounges remain tight-fisted with alcohol, keeping bottles behind the bar, and even charging extra for premium beer, wine, and spirits. We don’t see this policy changing in the near future.
Q: Does the drunk passenger situation seem to be more prevalent overseas than in the US
The short answer is no. With hundreds of millions of passengers passing through airports in the US each year, the likelihood of encountering the few bad eggs will of course increase. Air rage incidents can occur anywhere, and we’ve seen reported spikes in the UK, China, and other countries. Most of this, of course, can be attributed to the overall increase in passenger traffic over the past decade.
Q: How valuable is the “free” cocktails component of club membership?
We find that most travelers who purchase club memberships typically value comfort, privacy, and convenient business amenities the most. However, complimentary beer, wine, and cocktails are certainly a very popular aspect of the airport lounge experience as well. In terms of value, if you consider that a typical cocktail at an airport bar costs approximately $15 including tip, then just two to three drinks in an airport lounge can represent the cost of a standard one-time entry pass ($35 – $50). With an annual lounge membership, the value of these free drinks can be even greater. Of course, we don’t recommend purchasing a membership for the sole purpose of overindulging in alcohol at the airport lounge. However, we do find that alcoholic beverages remain one of the most popular amenities inside the lounge.
What do you think? Should airports restrict booze sales? If so, how would that impact your decisions around airline lounge use? Please leave your comments below.
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You make a good point.
I need alcohol just to get on the plane, I hate flying so.
I’d be fine with that, but it sounds difficult to administer. But I tend to agree with those who suggest that free booze in airline lounges are not the problem. It’s rarely the frequent traveler (and pretty much everyone in an airline lounge is a frequent traveler) who succumbs to air rage — we know what the air travel experience is like and that sometimes we just have to grit our teeth and endure.
Sounds great on paper but frankly people won’t realize this and this will continue.
Guess you didn’t read my post below, I really think that “air rage” is because of what the airlines have done to make better profits.
Again air rage is been brought on by the airlines in trying to make profits.
Also look at the problems with people trying to save the $35 with excess baggage. It’s a big problem again forced on us all because the airlines are now making big profits by charging for bags.
I hate this all, I can no longer take my golf clubs on trips because it’s too expensive, cheaper to rent clubs instead.
Rage is caused by the greed of the airlines, that is something you folks rarely report.
Comment sent via email from reader T.A.
I think the better approach is to vigorously prosecute air rage incidents, especially those involving alcohol, levy steep fines, and publicize them well. It’s not going to stop folks but the prospect of being hit with a fine running into the thousands of dollars for bad behavior on an airplane should get the message across. Once a plane departs, drunks and badly behaved passengers aren’t just unpleasant, they’re a safety hazard because they can prevent the crew from performing safety relate duties and an incident could quickly degenerate into a nasty brawl. Even better, crews should be empowered (the captain already is) to kick off passengers who are intoxicated or impaired.
The airlines, the FAA and the Department of Justice have to adopt a zero tolerance policy toward badly behaved passengers.
First of all, have we ever heard of air rage in first class??? Of course not, it always happens in coach because the seats are too close together, the flight is uncomfortable and it’s getting worst what is asked of people now in coach. I am normally a calm person but have at times had either a flight, a flight attendant, a fellow passenger or worst of all the discomfort of sitting in a really terrible seat that have almost set me off in “air rage”
What is sad we never hear of rage on a Amtrak train, that’s because the seats are very comfortable. Same with first class, you make a situation good for people and they will not fight.
So the more greed by the airlines in finding ways of adding seats and making the flying experience terrible is the real reason for “air rage.”
On drinking of course if you make booz as unattractive by simply raising the price. That is why we don’t have that much rage at sporting events, $10 beers tends to make it hard to really get drunk at a game. Same with drinking on a plane, it’s not cheap to drink but you do find people that want to have four to six drinks and that tends to ask for problems.
Same with high price drinks in lounges at the airport. As for free drinking at clubs, again you give folks free drinking before a terrible flight, they will get drunk and cause problems.
But in answering this question ask yourself on question, why we never see “rage” from those that go on Amtrak. Because it’s comfortable.
A few controlling the many if it should come to pass…
have never seen aproblem at the lounges anywhere
I don’t think it’s lounges that are the problem it’s the bars in the concourse. Not so much in the US but definitely in the UK, where like everything else if you have the money they’ll take it from you and not worry about the consequences. Also duty free shops should follow the US example, where you choose what you want to buy and then it’s delivered to the gate. In the UK especially when there are long delays on charter flights people are opening their bottles of duty free and drinking them.
I doubt this girl was boozing it up at an open bar at atlanta and then was still drunk upon landing at lax. I hope they don’t get rid of the classy open bars at the flagship lounges. It’s a high end perk I haven’t seen people abusing.
How about if they gave, say, a $150 credit that could be used on food or beverage?
Except that when they do the former, they won’t necessarioy do the latter.
As a member, I would be very happy for airline clubs to cut out the free booze and lower annual fees.