AP Photo/Evan Vucci
- An American Airlines flight attendant had broken bones after a passenger attacked her last week.
- Transportation Secretary Buttigieg told CNN a “no-fly list” should be an option for such passengers.
- Air crews have been dealing with a sharp increase in violence and unruly behavior this year.
Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg said Sunday that adding unruly passengers to a “no-fly list” should be an option after the latest incident involving the assault of a flight attendant.
The Federal Aviation Administration has investigated more than 900 unruly passenger incidents in 2021, up from 146 in 2019. Last week, an American Airlines flight attendant had multiple broken bones in her face after being attacked by a passenger.
On CNN’s State of the Union, Dana Bash asked Buttigieg if there should be a “federal no-fly list for people who behave like this.”
“I think that should be on the table,” Buttigieg said. “It is completely unacceptable to mistreat, abuse, or even disrespect flight crews.”
“There is absolutely no excuse for this kind of treatment of flight crews in the air, or any of the essential workers from bus drivers to air crews, who get people to where they need to be.”
He said the FAA, which is housed in the transportation department, is proposing harsh penalties and fines for those who disrupt flights. In August, the agency said it had already fined unruly passengers a total of $1 million this year.
Flight attendants have said they are exhausted and afraid as a result of the passenger behavior they’re dealing with on the job. Several told Insider’s Allana Akhtar earlier this year the “unprecedented” rise in violence has taken a toll on their mental health.
Crews have reported instances of physical violence, sexual misconduct, and verbal harassment or refusal to comply with rules like mask mandates.
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