Jet2.com will ban the sale of alcohol on board its morning flights in its latest bid to tackle a rise in disruptive and abusive behaviour among passengers.
It said the ‘ground-breaking’ move will be introduced from this Monday (August 8) across all its bases.
The airline is also calling for airports and retailers to follow its lead and also ban alcohol sales before 08:00 BST.
It is also encouraging industry partners to support the call for fully-sealed bags for alcohol purchased in airports to stop illegal consumption of personal alcohol before and during flights. It has been trialling the bags at Manchester and Glasgow airports.
“We have decided to follow up very quickly on my comments made last week, by taking positive action to allow the millions of customers and families who fly with us to travel with confidence and have a great experience with Jet2.com,” said managing director Phil Ward.
“We believe that stopping sales of alcohol before 08:00BST on our morning flights is an effective way to ensure everyone has an enjoyable and comfortable journey. We understand that we’re the first of the European airlines to take this bold step and call upon industry partners in airports to also trade responsibly.”
The announcement is part of the airline’s clampdown on bad behaviour on its flights which has seen more than 500 passengers refused travel since 2015, with over 50 of these given lifetime bans.
Following comments by new Aviation Minister, Lord Ahmad, last week, the airline has also written to the Minister for Transport and said it will continue to actively consult with government bodies and MPs to further engage with them about this issue.
