NCJ Number
196306
Journal
International Journal of Police Science and Management Volume: 4 Issue: 2 Dated: Summer 2002 Pages: 139-147
Date Published
2002
Length
9 pages
Annotation
This article describes a problem-oriented approach by the Greater Manchester Police (GMP) in the United Kingdom (U.K.) regarding disruptive airline passengers.
Abstract
In the last 3 years, there have been several incidents involving disruptive passengers on aircraft and at airports in the United Kingdom. There is great potential for disruptive passengers to endanger the safety of the traveling public. The spectrum of disruptive passenger incidents ranges from passengers complaining about the service they have received to serious events where there are assaults on aircrew or a hijack situation. Disruptive passengers can divert the attention of aircrew from their safety duties -- with potentially fatal consequences. Passengers and crew are unable to call for assistance from the police and are relatively helpless to deal with the circumstances effectively. GMP recognized that there was an actual problem and that action needed to be taken. Four main groups that needed to be better informed about disruptive passenger incidents were identified as airline staff, ground staff, the police, and the public. The emphasis at Manchester Airport is to prevent incidents arising in flight by taking steps on the ground to address potentially causal factors. The GMP uses a variety of methods to respond to disruptive passengers, including providing a physical uniform presence in the vicinity; giving verbal advice; giving a warning notice; giving a final warning and advice to gate staff; and, when appropriate, arrest. The GMP identified shortcomings in the U.K. law relating to disruptive passengers, and issued a number of recommendations for improving the powers and penalties available to the police, which were accepted in 2001. The GMP recognized that there was a need to enhance the ability of aircrew to support the judicial process by providing appropriate witness statements. A similar system has been put in place to enable evidence to be gathered from a large number of passenger witnesses. It is difficult to evaluate clearly how effective these approaches have been due to the lack of historical data for comparison purposes. However, in 2001 there were less disruptive passenger incidents overall than in 2000. 1 table