"Unruly Passengers": Cases at AUA Almost Doubled

The Ministry of Infrastructure and the domestic aviation industry established clear rules for safe flying on Tuesday in Vienna. Specifically, it concerns the handling of unruly passengers. In the presence of Minister Peter Hanke (SPÖ), a corresponding declaration was signed.

A "joint statement" is important, emphasized the head of the department before the start of the main travel season. It is about safety, which "always takes precedence" in aviation. House rules must be followed, Hanke stated unequivocally.

Clear Rules, Zero Tolerance

With the declaration, the ministry, Austro Control, five airlines (Austrian, Ryanair, Wizz, easyJet, and Peoples), as well as the airports in Vienna, Graz, Salzburg, Innsbruck, Klagenfurt, and Linz, have agreed on clear rules for passengers, stronger support for flight and ground staff, and zero tolerance in case of escalation. Alcohol is in focus. Additionally, there will be a permanent task force led by the Ministry of Infrastructure and regular evaluations.

At Vienna Airport in Schwechat, there were 233 incidents with passengers who resisted orders from the beginning of January to the end of May, said board director Julian Jäger on Tuesday to the APA. This corresponds roughly to the level of the previous year. Locations of such incidents ranged from check-in to security control to boarding. There is "zero tolerance" here, emphasized the airport chief. He also pointed out the consequences, which can range from exclusion from the flight to a ban from the airport to criminal charges in severe cases.

More "Unruly Passengers" at AUA

According to airline information, Austrian has seen the number of cases with "unruly passengers" increase by 98.4 percent from 2019 to 2024, nearly doubling. Last year, there were 588 cases, 112 of which were at the station and 476 on board. From January to May 2025, there were 237 reported cases. Austrian informed the APA that 68 were at the station and 169 on board.

According to AUA, alcohol and/or drugs were an issue in about 20 percent of the cases. Smoking, whether cigarette or e-cigarette, on board "occurs repeatedly." Specifically, 26 cases were reported in the first five months of the current year.

Bans Were Not Avoided

Austrian has the option to issue written warnings to "unruly passengers" or impose bans for one, three, or five years. During this period, the passenger in question is not able to book an AUA flight. If a passenger becomes conspicuous due to inappropriate behavior before departure, "there is the option to exclude the person from the flight," the airline stated.

From January to May of this year, AUA banned ten passengers from flights, two of them for one year, and four each for three and five years. In 2024, a total of 28 bans were issued.

(APA/Red)

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