The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Has Had It With Unruly Passenger Disruptions. While there's no FAA mandate on mask wearing, all U.S. airlines do require face masks, and passengers who have refused to wear masks have been the cause of a number of the recent disruptions, for example passengers who assaulted flight attendants on Allegiant Air flights, and 14 passengers whom Alaska Airlines banned for refusing to wear masks and harassing flight crew on a Washington, DC to Seattle flight on 1/7/21.
In the past the FAA has taken a quite measured response, issuing warnings and mandating counseling before resorting to civil penalties. But no longer.
Effective immediately through March 30, 2021, the FAA, with its Order 2150.3C, will pursue legal enforcement against “passengers who interfere with, physically assault, or threaten to physically assault aircraft crew or anyone else on an aircraft.” The penalties include fines of up to $35,000 and imprisonment.
Here's FAA Administrator Steve Dickson's video outlining the change in enforcement:
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Have you been on a flight where there were highly disruptive passengers? What measures did the flight crew take?
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