Since the start of the pandemic, airlines have banned hundreds of passengers from flights because of bad behavior – someone assaulted a flight attendant, refused to wear a mask, the list goes on and on.
Faced with a trend that doesn’t seem to be going anywhere anytime soon, now a new effort is underway to get airlines to band together and pool their information about bad flyers.
As of Friday afternoon, more than 3,100 people signed a Change.org petition asking for airlines to be allowed to share their no fly lists with each other.
"If you behave badly on one airline and you’re banned, you could still buy a ticket with another carrier," said travel industry analyst Henry Harteveldt. "No airline, or its passengers, or its employees should be subject to that."
"So the request for this information to be shared is reasonable," he said.
However, some are concerned about the privacy implications of sharing such information, and what kind of process there would be for adding someone to this shared database of bad passengers.
It’s also unclear what the system would be for passengers who are seeking to get their flying rights back after being banned.
"What really matters is saying, 'This person behaved badly, he or she should not be allowed, here are the pertinent details about the passenger: why they were banned from our airline and why they should be banned from other airlines,'" said Harteveldt.
The reports of bad behavior have increased throughout the pandemic. In a May incident, a passenger punched a Southwest flight attendant, causing two of her teeth to get knocked out. The altercation was caught on video and posted to social media.
More recently in October, a passenger on an American Airlines flight hit a flight attendant twice in the face, breaking bones. He was charged with charged in federal court with interfering with a flight crew and assault.
After that incident, an American Airlines CEO, Doug Parker, posted on social media decrying such behavior.
"While these interactions are not the norm, even one is too many, and they must stop," he wrote.
"Many of us choose to work in aviation because we know that travel connects the world. As the world reopens and you return to the skies, please do so with respect, kindness and grace – toward your fellow passengers and the fantastic team members who will be caring for you on your journey. The vast majority of you are doing that already, so please keep it up and thank you for entrusting us with your travel. We look forward to seeing you soon," said Parker.
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