Is it illegal to be drunk on a plane and how much alcohol can you take on a flight? | The Sun
01/31/2023PEOPLE heading on vacation may feel like having an alcoholic drink to settle their nerves for the flight, or to toast their time away.
However, there are restrictions on what you can take onto an aircraft. Here's what we know about alcohol on a plane.
How much alcohol can you take on a plane?
Passengers can take up to 5l of alcohol with them which was purchased at Duty-Free, which is between 24 per cent and 70 per cent alcohol volume.
Alcohol under 24 per cent isn't limited, while any booze over 70 per cent is completely banned.
Is it illegal to be drunk on a flight?
It is a criminal offence to be drunk on an aircraft.
It's also prohibited to drink any of your own alcohol – including any Duty Free bottles – that you've brought onto the flight.
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Cabin crew have the right to refuse to serve any passenger at their discretion.
But if things get out of hand, offenders can receive a maximum sentence of two years' imprisonment according to the Civil Aviation Authority, or fines up to £80,000.
Airlines can also refuse to allow passengers on board if they believe they pose a risk to the plane, with that including being drunk.
Some airlines have even stopped selling booze on their flights, which includes Southwest Airline and American Airlines.
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Ryanair has warned passengers travelling on flights to Spain that they cannot take any booze into the cabin with them, and that bags will be searched.
How often do people get drunk on flights?
Flight attendants have warned of a huge rise in intoxicated flight disruptions, resulting in more passengers causing flights to divert.
In March, a beauty therapist was kicked off a 6am Ryanair flight to Ibiza after she got drunk and refused to wear a face mask, while another drunk passenger was jailed after he headbutted the flight crew after he was asked to wear a face mask.
And in June, a drunk Jet2 passenger who had to be locked in an aircraft toilet and restrained after he tried to bite female cabin crew on a flight to Turkey was jailed.
Do people get more drunk while in the air?
Dr Clare Morrison, from online doctor MedExpress, said people can be more affected by alcohol while flying than they would when on land.
She told HuffPost UK: "When on a plane, the barometric pressure in the cabin of a plane is lower than it normally is.
"This decreased pressure means that the body finds it harder to absorb oxygen – this can produce light-headedness or hypoxia.
"In other words, the lower level of oxygen in your blood means that you may seem more drunk in the air than you would on the ground after consuming the same amount of alcohol.
"As well as this, you could become dehydrated very quickly as the air in an aircraft is very dry, so you may become dehydrated faster than you would on the ground."
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