Wiser by experiences late last year, the management of Tata-owned Air India has made significant changes in its policy of serving liquor to passengers on board its international flights.
Now the crew members can refuse a passenger a drink. The crew can also restrain guests from drinking their own alcohol until it is served on board.
Air India was fined heavily after unruly behaviour by two of its passengers on New York-Delhi and Paris-Delhi flights late last year.
In the first incident, on the New York-Delhi, a passenger , who was later arrested from Bengaluru, allegedly urinated on a fellow woman passenger after getting inebriated.
The airline has now revised its in-flight alcohol service policy amid a rise in incidents related to unruly behaviour of passengers. According to the amended policy, the crew members will serve liquor to the passengers with great tact. Apart from this, alcohol has to be served in flights in a safe manner.
The new policy also restraints the guests from consuming alcohol until it is served by the cabin crew. Now crew members are also required to keep a close watch on the guests or passengers who are consuming their alcohol.
Besides the New York-Delhi flight, there were incidents of misbehaviour with other passengers. In another incident a drunk passenger allegedly urinated on the woman’s blanket.
These two highly publicised incidents saw Air India getting back-to-back heavy penalties from the regulator of civil aviation in India, Director-General of Civil Aviation (DGCA)
The revised policy also makes a provision that if needed, it can refuse to serve liquor to the passengers again. The revised policy, says an Air India spokesperson, is modelled on the guidelines of the American National Restaurants Association guidelines besides incorporating practices adopted by other international airlines.
Prabhjot Singh