France is tightening its on-board rules for local airlines: in future, misconduct on the plane will end up in a central database - with fines of up to 20,000 euros.
Anyone who misbehaves on an airplane in France must expect much harsher consequences in future. At the beginning of November, the government passed a new set of regulations that allows local airlines to report misconduct centrally - and impose severe penalties for it.
Disruptive passengers are by no means an exception in European airspace, as the International Air Transport Association (IATA) reports. Every month, around 200 to 500 such incidents are registered in which passengers behave badly on board - on average, there is one incident for every 395 flights per year. Up to now, airlines have been allowed to make use of their domiciliary rights and place people on internal "blacklists" or exclude them from their own route network. However, a comprehensive travel ban across all airlines was not planned.
This is now changing in France: Airlines such as "Air France", "Transavia", "Air Corsica" and "French bee" are now allowed to report violations to a new database of the Ministry of Transport. These include the unauthorized use of electronic devices, obstructing the crew or disregarding safety instructions.
For a first offense, the state provides for fines of up to 10,000 euros. Repeated offenders can be fined up to 20,000 euros. Particularly serious cases can even result in a flight ban of up to four years. At the same time, criminal consequences remain possible - in serious situations, there is a risk of up to five years in prison and heavy fines.
According to Transport Minister Philippe Tabarot, the new regulation is primarily intended to improve safety and make everyday flying easier. Disruptive behavior endangers operations and puts a strain on the crew, according to reports from Paris.
France is a pioneer in Europe with this measure, but the problem is known internationally. Some airlines are already taking action without a legal basis: "Ryanair", for example, demanded five-figure compensation from a passenger after a flight had to be diverted due to his misconduct.
