Amid a pandemic-fueled surge in bad behavior on airplanes, the Federal Aviation Administration is pushing for an $81,950 fine, the largest the agency has ever recommended against an unruly passenger, for a woman who stands accused of hitting, spitting at, head-butting and biting flight crew members in July. “If you are on an airplane, don’t be a jerk and don’t endanger the flight crews and fellow passengers,” Pete Buttigieg, the transportation secretary, said on “The View” Friday as he announced the fine. “If you do, you will be fined by the FAA.” The FAA is also recommending a $77,272 fine, another record, for a woman who the agency says “attempted to hug and kiss the passenger seated next to her; walked to the front of the aircraft to try to exit during flight; refused to return to her seat; and bit another passenger multiple times” on a flight from Las Vegas to Atlanta in July. The FAA did not name the passengers involved in the incidents, which occurred on flights operated by American Airlines and Delta. The recommended fines telegraph that the FAA is not ready to back down on disciplining problematic passengers. Though passengers have been wreaking occasional havoc in the sky since the earliest days of air travel, the pandemic seems to have created the conditions for frequent and extreme unruliness.<br/>
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The FAA said Friday it is naming a new head of its aircraft certification service as the agency works to implement significant reforms Congress ordered in December 2020. The FAA said effective on May 8 Lirio Liu, who directs the FAA's International Affairs office, will become the new executive director of its Aircraft Certification Service replacing Earl Lawrence, who is moving to a new role at the FAA. The move comes days after FAA Administrator Steve Dickson stepped down and Billy Nolen, the FAA’s aviation safety chief, was named acting administrator effective April 1. There have been a number of other personnel changes recently at the FAA. On Wednesday, the National Business Aviation Administration said it was naming the FAA's acting aviation safety chief Chris Rocheleau as its new chief operating officer.<br/>
The federal mask mandate on flights may be ending soon, but that won’t eliminate the threat of unruly passengers disrupting flights, the head of the largest U.S. flight attendants union warns. “I don’t view the two as related,” Association of Flight Attendants (AFA) President Sara Nelson said. “Clearly we have had conflicts on masks, but the issue of violence on board is a bigger issue: It’s about not wanting to follow the rules.” Nelson and the AFA are putting their weight behind a new bill introduced by Representatives Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.), Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Penn.), and Senator Jack Reed (D-R.I.) that would stiffen penalties for disruptive behavior onboard aircraft. “Unfortunately, too many of our pilots, flight attendants and crew members are dealing with unacceptable abuse from passengers — everything from kicking to spitting to biting,” Swalwell said in introducing the bill. “This behavior is not only inappropriate, but it also puts other crew and passengers at risk.” The bill would create a national list of passengers who are barred from flying due to disruptive behavior. This would be separate from the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s (FBI) “no-fly” list of suspected terrorists or criminals. Instead, the list would be managed by the TSA and would allow redress for passengers who think they were included in error.<br/>
British citizens should avoid Russian airlines due to safety concerns, following a decision by Britain's Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) to put Russia on a safety watchlist, transport minister Grant Shapps said on Friday. "I urge all British nationals to avoid flying with a Russian airline," Shapps said, adding the CAA had acted "due to our concerns that the Russian authorities are actively promoting unsafe practices". Russian airlines are already banned from entering British airspace.<br/>
Cancelled flights and long queues at British airports caused by a lack of staff due to the coronavirus pandemic will hit confidence and hold back recovery unless the problems are resolved quickly, the aviation regulator said on Friday. British Airways and easyJet have cancelled dozens of flights in recent days and airports have been overwhelmed as a shortage of staff and high COVID-19 sickness levels have coincided with a surge in demand for travel in the run-up to Easter holidays. The head of the Civil Aviation Authority told airlines and airports he expected the two sides to work together on staffing to fill the gaps, saying airlines should only advertise schedules they could deliver with current staffing levels. Cancellations should be announced well ahead of time. "Instances of late notice cancellations and excessive delays at airports are not just distressing for affected consumers but have the potential to impact confidence levels across the industry," Richard Moriarty said in a letter. Airports across Europe have warned of a struggle to recruit and train staff but the problem is particularly acute in Britain where soaring cases of COVID have kept staff at home and many workers deserted the industry for more reliable jobs. One of the worst affected airports is Manchester, serving customers in northern England, where queues have extended out of the terminal.<br/>
A dozen airport drivers, firefighters and even plane maintenance staff reported to work drunk in India in the first two months of the year, a regulatory crackdown found, reigniting concerns about flight safety in an aviation market that’s previously had issues with inebriated pilots. Under a program initiated by India’s Directorate General of Civil Aviation, ground employees with IndiGo -- the nation’s biggest airline -- SpiceJet Ltd., and even Indian Oil Corp. were found to have failed failed breath-analyzer tests in January and February, according to a person familiar with the matter. A first breach leads to a suspension, and repeat offenders may see their permits to work in airports confiscated, the person said, asking not to be identified because the information isn’t public. India in December revised guidelines to expand the universe of airport workers who would be subjected to breath-analyzer checks. Maintenance staff and anyone who visits the cockpit for inspection, audit or training were included. The list has since been expanded further to include drivers of baggage carts, loaders, push-back operators and air traffic controllers, the person said. Expanding the testing pool will bring Indian airport safety and operation standards closer to global benchmarks. Even when blood alcohol levels are near zero, the effects of any alcohol consumption can last as long as 36 hours, according to guidelines released last year. A spokesman for India’s civil aviation ministry, which oversees the DGCA, didn’t have an immediate comment. IndiGo said that January 2022 “witnessed the peak of Covid cases during the third wave.”<br/>
Travellers faced long waits at Sydney airport for a second day in a row, with the Qantas CE, Alan Joyce, partly blaming customers for not being “match fit”, before later clarifying his comments. Lines at the domestic terminals on Friday snaked all the way to the entry doors, spilling out to the taxi rank at times as more passengers arrived. On Thursday night, the Sydney airport CE, Geoff Culbert, apologised for the delays, blaming “inexperienced” passengers and staff shortages. “We’re facing a perfect storm at the moment. Traffic numbers are picking up, travellers are inexperienced after two years of not travelling, and the close contact rules are making it hard to fill shifts and staff the airport,” he said. Joyce made similar comments on Friday suggesting high “staff absenteeism” due to Covid was partly behind the delays. But he also said passengers were “not match fit” after an extended period of not travelling. “I went through the airports on Wednesday and people forget they need to take out their laptops, they have to take out their aerosols ... so that is taking longer to get through the queue,” he said. However, passengers pointed out that at least three out of eight security lanes were closed at terminal 2 on Friday morning. Joyce later clarified his comments: “Just to be clear, I’m not ‘blaming’ passengers. Of course it’s not their fault. I was asked what the factors were and why queues are so long at airports. And I explained the multiple reasons. I went through airport security this morning myself. Everyone is doing their best including passengers, who are showing incredible patience in these queues. We’re seeing these same pressures at airports around the world and it’s something we’re all working hard to get through.” The airport’s general manager of operations, Greg Hay, said the Easter holiday peak had come while the airport’s security partner, Certis Security Australia, was still rebuilding its workforce.<br/>