Air rage is aggressive or violent behavior by passengers or crew of an aircraft, especially during flight, often brought on by the physiological and psychological stresses of air travel and frequently involving alcohol. It ranges from violating safety regulations and verbally abusing flight attendants or other passengers to conduct that threatens the safety of the flight itself. Because an aircraft, unlike a ship, has no isolated area to hold a disruptive passenger, a serious incident can force a diversion; while most offenders have no terrorist intent, incidents involving interference with the cabin or flight controls are treated with particular seriousness, and public and regulatory attention to air rage increased sharply after the September 11 attacks.
Facts
Typical PenaltyIn the United States, passengers who disrupt flight crew duties can face fines of up to $25,000 and lengthy prison sentences. 1 Elements of OffenseAir rage behavior includes failure to follow safety regulations, verbal abuse toward flight attendants or passengers, and conduct suggesting a threat to flight safety. 1 Notable ExampleThe first recorded case of air rage occurred in 1947 on a flight from Havana to Miami, when an intoxicated man assaulted another passenger and a flight attendant. 1 Jurisdiction VariationIn Canada, the pilot in command is designated a peace officer under the Criminal Code with the same powers of arrest as a police officer, unlike most other jurisdictions. 1 Classification
Offense GradeMinor or Summary Offense 1 Connections
Has Offense Grade
Entity-backed identity for the offense-grade enum value this offense already carries, resolved to a crime concept by an explicit value-to-entity map (phase 3 bucket conversion, docs\design_entity_backed_browse_buckets_20260928.md). The offense-grade fact itself stays on the offense unchanged.
In the Other Atlases
Sources
1. Air Rage (Wikipedia)
WikipediaLead paragraph, Air rage
Air rage is aggressive or violent behavior on the part of passengers and crew of aircraft, especially during flight.
Consequences section, United States penalty sentence
In the United States, passengers who disrupt the duties of a flight crew member can face fines up to $25,000 and sometimes lengthy prison sentences.
Consequences section, Canada peace officer sentence
In Canada, the pilot-in-command (PIC) of the aircraft is designated as a peace officer under the Criminal Code and as such, have the same powers of arrest as a police officer.
Lead section
Examples of air rage behavior include failure to follow safety regulations, verbal abuse directed at flight attendants or other passengers, and other behavior that gives suspicion of a threat to flight safety.
History section
The first case of air rage was recorded in 1947 on a flight from Havana to Miami, when a drunk man assaulted another passenger and a flight attendant.
View the Source Reader Challenges (0)
No disputes yet. Spotted an error or a better source? Open the first one.
Sign in to dispute this or suggest a correction.