United Airlines is not on board with using duct tape to restrain passengers, according to a company memo obtained by USA Today.
"Please remember that there are designated items onboard that may be used in difficult situations, and alternative measures such as tape should never be used," John Slater, senior vice president of inflight services at United Airlines, wrote. It was shared with in-flight crews Friday.
This memo comes after other airlines, including American and Frontier, made headlines for restraining unruly passengers with duct tape. Just last week, American flight attendants duct-taped a 13-year-old boy into his seat.
Slater encouraged employees to de-escalate "difficult situations calmly," including "discussing the situation with the Captain, Customer Service Representative and Ground Security Coordinator," according to the USA Today report.
A representative for United told the outlet that the directives are not new, and that the memo was a reiteration of existing guidelines.
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In response to the letter, Sara Nelson, president of the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA, dismissed the the notice as "a sick marketing stunt" in a tweet.
United declined to comment on Nelson's tweet, according to USA Today.
As of Aug. 16, there have been 3,889 unruly passengers reported and 2,867 mask-related incidents reported, and 682 investigations initiated and 120 enforcement cases initiated in response to in-flight behavior, according to the Federal Aviation Administration. Data shows a steep increase over previous years.
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